PRINCETON,  N.  J. 


% 


BX  8080  .E23  M65  1882 
Mombert,  J.  I.  1829-1913. 
Faith  victorious 


SAel/. 


SOUTH   VIEW   OF   THE   OLD-TOWN    CHURCH    AT   KONIGSBERG   BEFORE    ITS   DEMOLITION. 


FAITH    VICTORIOUS, 


BEING    AN    ACCOUNT    OF    THE    LIFE   AND 
LABORS,  AND  OF  THE  TIMES 


f 

THE  VENERABLE  DR.  JOHANN  EBEL, 

LATE    ARCHDEACON    OF   THE    OLD    TOWN    CHURCH    OF 
kOnIGSBERG,    in   PRUSSIA. 


DRAWN   FROM    AUTHENTIC    SOURCES, 


BY 

,/ 

J.  I.    MOMBERT,    D.D. 


NEW   YORK: 
ANSON  D.   F.  RANDOLPH  &  COMPANY, 

goo  Broadway. 
1S82. 


Copyright 

1882, 

By  J.    I.    MOMBERT. 


PRESS   CF    J.    J.    LITTLE   L  CO., 
tJOS.   13    TO   20    ASTOR    PLACE,    NEW    YORK. 


PREFACE. 


This  work  presents  : 

1.  The  biography  of  a  Lutheran  clergyman,  but 
little  known  outside  of  Germany,  but  whose  com- 
manding intellect,  interesting  history,  and  apostoli- 
cal zeal  in  the  maintenance  and  vindication  of  pure 
and  true  evangelical  doctrine  in  opposition  to  the 
skepticism  and  deadness  of  German  Christianity 
in  the  first  third  of  this  century,  entitle  him  to  the 
gratitude,  love  and  veneration  which  all  lovers  of 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  owe  to  the  champions  and 
martyrs  of  the  faith  once  delivered  to  the  saints. 

2.  An  account  of  a  phase  of  religious  life  in 
Germany,  the  existence  of  which  is  not  generally 
known,  and  freqiieritly  dotibted,  in  countries  of 
English  speech,  illustrative  of  the  inherent  power 
of  Christianity  to  purify,  develop  and  ennoble  the 
natural  endowments  of  the  soul  to  the  loftiest 
self-consecration.  Acquaintance  with  the  noble 
characters  introduced  cannot  fail  to  interest  and 
benefit  all  Christian  reader?. 

3 


4  PREFACE. 

3.  A  contribution  to  Church  History,  by  unfold- 
ing the  authentic  data  of  the  famous  Religious 
Suit  of  Konigsberg. 

The  uses  contemplated  affect  the  clergy  and 
laity  "alike;  the  clergy,  by  laying  open  the  springs 
and  methods  of  a  singularly  useful,  effective  and 
blessed  ministry ;  the  laity,  by  holding  up  the 
illustrious  example  of  so  many  devoted  Christians 
to  their  admiration,  encouragement  and  edifica- 
tion. 

The  production,  in  an  Appendix,  of  an  interest- 
ing and  original  conception  of  the  origin  and  gov- 
ernment of  the  world,  it  is  hoped,  will  be  welcomed 
as  a  contribution  to  the  literature  of  philosophical 
and  theological  thought. 

The  author  trusts  and  prays  that  this  work  and 
labor  of  love  may  be  blessed  to  his  brethren  in  the 
ministry,  and  to  the  vastly  greater  number  of  his 
brethren  of  the  household  of  faith,  fellow-citizens 
with  the  saints,  and  of  the  commonwealth  of  God. 


-■>■■    PEIITCSTOIT 

■'i 

\ 

■■\     r--f  rr  yn  r\  r    f\  n  ^  n  • 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 

Preface 3 

Chapter  I. — Early  Years 7 

"         II. — Early  Ministry 30 

"        III. — Frederic  College 70 

IV.— The  Old-Town  Church 84 

"  V. — Schonherr  and  False  Friends 107 

"        VL— Noble  Christians 131 

"      VII.— The  Religious  Suit 151 

"    VIII.— Rest 191 

Appendices  : 

A.  Sermons  of  Ebel 218 

1.  The  Great  Change,  Ezek.  xxxvi.  26,  27 218 

2.  A  Paradox,  2  Cor.  xii.  10 236 

3.  Fidelity  in  the  Least,  Luke  xvi.  10-13 248 

B.  Notice  of  Schonherr 258 

Extracts  from  his  Writings,  Remains,  the  works  of 

others,  Analyses,  etc 262 

C.  Miscellaneous 293 

Index 313 

Illustrations  : 

I.  View  of  the  Old-Town  Church Frontispiece. 

II.  Ebel's  Autographs iSS,  200 


FAITH    VICTORIOUS 


CHAPTER   I. 

EARLY     YEARS 


The  subject  of  this  memoir,  Johannes  Wilhelm  Ebel, 
was  born  March  4,  1784,  at  Passenheim,  in  East  Prussia. 
He  was  the  first  child  of  the  Reverend  Johann  Jacob 
Ebel,  the  Lutheran  minister  of  the  place,  by  his  wife, 
Louise  Wilhelmine,  daughter  of  the  municipal  councillor, 
Holdschuhe.  True,  earnest,  simple  piety  marked  the 
life  of  his  parents,  who,  though  poor  as  to  this  world, 
were  rich  towards  God.  The  mother,  like  Mary,  had 
chosen  the  good  part,  and  like  Hannah,  had  consecrated 
her  first-born  to  the  peculiar  service  of  God,  from  the 
moment  of  his  birth.  To  her  early  vow,  intermingled 
with  the  ardent  longing  of  her  soul,  fed  and  animated  by 
constant  prayer,  and  to  her  godly  example,  and  precepts 
drawn  from  the  Word  of  God,  the  world  is,  under  God, 
indebted  for  a  large  share  of  the  pure  piety,  trium- 
phant faith,  and  love  of  the  Scriptures,  which  peculiarly 
stamped  the  life  and  graced  the  ministry  of  Johannes, 
or  as  we  shall  call  him,  of  John  Ebel. 

To  this  general  characterization,  we  now  add  some 
particulars  shedding  light  on  the  influences  that  pre- 
sided over  the  early  life  £ind  culture  of  the  child  John, 

7 


8  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

as  he  was  being  trained  in  the  nurture  and  admonition 
of  the  Lord.  His  father  was  a  man  of  considerable  at- 
tainments, a  good  classic  and  theologian.  Though  de- 
vout and  believing,  profoundly  convinced  of  the  divine 
origin  of  Holy  Scripture,  and  the  necessity  of  a  holy  life, 
rendered  efficacious  through  intimate  personal  relation 
to  the  Saviour,  he  was  not  altogether  free  from  the  dom- 
inant neological  thought  of  the  period  at  the  commence- 
ment of  his  ministry.  As  he  advanced  in  years,  his  aban- 
donment of  neological  views,  and  adoption  of  strictly 
bibhcal  theology  became  more  pronounced.  But  there 
is  no  trace  of  neological  tendency  in  the  pure,  translu- 
cent piety  of  the  mother,  who,  early  orphaned,  and  ex- 
posed to  harsh  treatment  at  the  hands  of  a  step-mother, 
had  turned  in  touching  simplicity  to  the  protecting  care 
of  the  Father  in  heaven,  and  was  wont  to  hold  all  things 
in  Him,  and  Him  in  all  things.  The  correspondence  of 
the  betrothed  gives  evidence  of  the  deep  piety  of  both, 
and  shows  that  their  union,  so  happy  through  life,  began, 
continued,  and  ended  in  God  !  The  grand  principle 
which  those  godly  parents  imprinted  in  indelible  char- 
acters on  the  mind  of  John  was  this,  that  it  is  our  duty 
to  live  071  earth  for  heaven  j  that  principle  was  their  rule 
of  life,  which  they  applied  to  everything,  and  of  course, 
to  the  education  of  their  children.  Family  worship  at 
the  beginning  and  close  of  every  day,  grace  at  meals, 
the  solemn  celebration  of  the  Lord's  Supper  on  high  fes- 
tivals, belonged  to  the  conduct  of  a  Christian  home,  in 
which  prayer  was  the  native  element.  In  weal  and  woe, 
in  seasons  of  want,  which  were  the  rule,  and  seasons  of 
plenty,  which  were  the  exception,  their  wants  and  neces- 
sities, their  joys  and  griefs,  were  carried  to  the  throne  of 
grace,  and  the  never-failing  providence  of  God  was  ever 


EARLY   YEARS.  9 

sought  in  believing,  hopeful  trust.  Religion  was  a  7'e- 
ality,  and  interpenetrated  every,  even  the  most  ordinary, 
part  of  daily  life.  Under  such  influences,  augmented  by 
judicious  religious  instruction  and  Bible  history  enforced 
by  direct  application,  John  grew  up  in  the  fear  of  God, 
and  cherished  the  thought  to  become  a  minister.  He 
loved  to  pray,  and  early  acquired  the  faculty  of  commit- 
ting hymns  and  making  the  hymns  texts  of  sermons, 
which,  when  he  could  command  no  other  audience,  he 
would  deliver  to  an  imaginary  congregation,  consisting 
of  dolls,  carved  for  the  purpose  out  of  wood. 

Naturally  endowed  with  a  tender,  kind,  and  sympathetic 
disposition,  the  boy  was  a  universal  favorite,  and  when 
in  his  seventh  year  he  was  sent  to  school,  the  shortcom- 
ings of  fellow  pupils,  especially  when  they  led  to  punish- 
ment, gave  him  unspeakable  pain.  Scrupulous  veracity, 
unselfishness,  confidential  intercourse  with  his  mother  as 
to  all  matters  relating  to  his  own  early  troubles  and  trials 
and  temptations,  were  some  of  the  engaging  traits  of  the 
young  child.  One  of  the  greatest  secrets  of  earthly  hap- 
piness he  learned  from  intercourse  with  that  sweet  and 
saintly  mother,  the  secret  which  St.  Paul  so  eloquently 
commends  to  the  Philippians  ;  ''  Rejoice  in  the  Lord 
always,"  the  joy  which  is  the  outcome  of  personal  holi- 
ness, and  the  testimony  of  a  good  conscience.  That  se- 
cret, connected  with  habitual  prayer  and  thanksgiving, 
which  he  learned  from  his  mother,  he  never  forsook  in 
after  life  ;  it  was  perhaps  the  most  distinctive  feature  of 
his  character  and  ministry. 

The  rather  primitive  school  at  Passenheim,  and  private 
instruction  in  Latin  at  home,  supplied  until  his  eleventh 
year  the  means  of  his  education.  In  1795  the  even  tenor 
of  the  good  people's  life  was  interrupted  by  a  call  to  be- 


10  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

come  assistant  minister  in  the  Polish  congregation  at 
Konigsberg,  extended  to  the  hard-worked  and  ill-paid 
servant  of  Christ,  which,  while  it  brought  change,  was 
hardly  a  promotion,  for  the  emoluments  of  the  position 
at  Konigsberg  were  not  better  than  those  connected  wilh 
that  at  Passenheim,  and  keeping  the  wolf  from  the  door 
was  the  ever-pressing  concomitant  of  his  sacred  office. 
But  the  change  from  quiet  Passenheim  to  busy  stirring 
Konigsberg,  with  its  splendid  scholastic  institutions  and 
famous  university,  brought  sunshine  into  the  mind  of 
John,  and  his  lively  imagination  fell  quickly  to  work  to 
portray  a  future  of  golden  prospects.  Whatever  oc- 
curred, occurred  for  the  best  ;  God  sent  it  all,  and  every 
momentary  joy,  every  the  least  ministration  of  human 
kindness,  was  sent  from  on  high,  and  viewed  as  a  link  in 
the  mysterious  chain  of  providential  direction  shaping 
his  earthly  course  for  a  high  and  celestial  vocation. 
John  was  sent  to  the  Latin  school  of  the  Altstadt  at 
Konigsberg,  where  he  continued,  with  a  brief  interrup- 
tion to  be  presently  narrated,  until  he  entered  the  univer- 
sity. The  master  of  that  school  was  Hamann,  one  of  the 
most  distinguished  educators  of  the  period.  It  was  his 
plan,  in  order  to  become  personally  acquainted  with  all 
the  pupils,  even  the  most  youthful,  to  teach  every  week  a 
few  hours  in  every  class.  This  enabled  him  not  only  to 
study  the  character  and  mark  the  intellectual  calibre  of 
every  pupil,  but  also  to  establish  direct  personal  relations 
with  them.  John  was  an  uncommonly  bright,  quick, 
studious  and  conscientious  pupil.  His  record  in  every 
class  was  most  enviable  ;  quick  in  perception  and  grasp, 
diligent  and  careful  in  the  preparation  and  pursuit  of  his 
lessons,  obedient  to  his  teachers,  kind  and  sympathetic 
to  his  fellow-pupils,  and  withal  uniformly  modest  and 


EARLY  YEARS.  II 

pleasant,  he  was  honored  with  the  affection  and  confi- 
dence of  the  former,  and  rendered  happy  by  the  good 
will  of  the  latter. 

John's  great  merits  had  not  escaped  the  penetrating 
eye  of  Hamann,  who  neglected  no  opportunity  to  inflame 
the  zeal  and  fire  the  ambition  of  his  pupils.  One  day  he 
came  into  John's  class  (the  Tertia^  i.  e.  the  third  down- 
ward), accompanied  by  a  former  teacher  in  the  school, 
who,  after  passing  a  brilliant  examination  at  Berlin,  had 
just  been  appointed  military  chaplain.  Hamann  ad- 
dressed the  class  and  exhorted  them  to  take  encourage- 
ment from  his  example  to  aim  at  high  and  noble  ends  ; 
while  speaking  he  stood  near  John,  and  affectionately 
stroked  his  cheeks  ;  the  former  teacher,  well  acquainted 
with  him,  and  noticing  rhe  caress,  said  to  Hamann,  "  That 
boy  will  never  be  common." 

It  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that  John  was  happy  at 
school.  Good,  faithful,  conscientious,  manly  and  dihgent 
boys  always  are  ;  unhappy  boys  at  school,  with  very  rare 
exceptions,  are  deficient  in  one  or  other,  in  some  or  more, 
and  occasionally  in  all  the  qualities  named.  John's  ex- 
emplary conduct  bore  immediate  good  fruit ;  the  praise 
of  his  teachers,  the  thankful  approbation  of  his  parents, 
the  good  will  of  his  fellow-pupils  made  him  glad  and 
contented  ;  the  report  of  his  good  behavior  spread  over 
the  town,  and  the  parents  of  the  best  scholars  sought  for 
them  the  companionship  of  so  good  a  boy  as  John. 

The  sunny  memories  of  that  happy  school-life  had 
always  a  tender  place  in  the  heart  of  Ebel.  When  many 
years  later  he  wrote  an  admirable  pamphlet  on  educa- 
tion,* he  alluded  to  them,  and  affords  us  a  view  of  a 

*  Die  gcdeihliche  Erziehung,  p.  132  sqq. 


12  FAITH  VICTORIOUS. 

happy  band  of  youth  of  whom  he  was  the  spring  and 
centre  and  motive  power.  Childhood  and  youth,  to  a 
very  large  extent,  are  passed,  as  far  as  real  enjoyment 
and  pleasure  are  concerned,  almost  entirely  in  the  pleas- 
ure-lands of  imagination.  The  brightest  children  have 
generally  the  liveliest  imagination,  and  invest  the  unreal 
or  fictitious  with  a  surprising  degree  of  reality ;  they 
deliberately  invent  unreal  situations,  place  themselves  in 
them  as  actors,  and  derive  happiness  from  the  consis- 
tency and  perseverance  with  which  they  sustain  their 
part.  Such  an  ideal,  imaginary  estate  was  elaborated  by 
John,  for  his  companion  and  friends.  It  was  nothing 
less  than  a  sort  of  church  and  state  ;  the  latter,  it  would 
seem,  reduced  to  the  slender  proportions  of  a  provincial 
municipality  ;  but  there  was  a  church  and  a  school,  with 
a  full  complement  of  preachers  and  masters  ;  there  were 
services  and  sermons  ;  there  were  lessons  and  recitations, 
pubhc  examinations  conducted  by  imaginary  scholastic 
functionaries,  public  debates  solemnly  argued  on  Satur- 
day afternoons,  and  for  which  an  elaborately  prepared 
programme  was  duly  circulated  ;  prizes  were  likewise 
awarded,  and  commendatory  mention  was  made  of  peculi- 
arly meritorious  pupils.  As  the  young  people  engaged 
in  the  general  conduct  of  these  ideal  establishments 
were  rather  limited  in  number,  our  ingenious  friend 
John  7namtfactured  a  very  large  public  in  the  shape  of 
small  wands  with  carved  heads,  and  the  names  of  the 
respective  functionaries  duly  inscribed  thereon,  and  he 
likewise  supplied  the  exchequer  with  funds  in  the  shape 
of  stones  of  a  designated  value.  The  entire  common- 
wealth, embracing  ministers  and  congregations,  profes- 
sors and  pupils,  the  magistracy,  the  parents  and  citizens 
in  general,  with  an  ample  store  of  the  circulating  me- 


EARLY   YEARS.  1 3 

dium,  was  divided  among  the  members  of  the  ideal 
establishment  on  equitable  principles,  who  persevered  in 
their  unquestionably  useful  and  improving  work  for  a 
considerable  period  of  time. 

It  has  already  been  intimated  that  John's  father  had 
cherished  the  thought  that  he  should  enter  one  of  the 
learned  professions ;  he  now  changed  his  views  on 
grounds  sufficiently  striking  to  justify  their  consideration. 
As  applied  to  the  learned  professions  in  general,  exclud- 
ing theology,  the  question  was  one  of  means.  The 
slender  income  of  the  assistant  minister  imperatively 
dictated  a  diminution,  not  an  increase  of  expenditure; 
he  could  not  afford  the  necessary  outlay,  for  he  had  not 
got  it,  -and  therefore  he  ruled  it  wise  to  convert  a  con- 
sumer into  a  producer  by  the  m.ost  expeditious  and  re- 
munerative course.  He  felt  convinced  that  John,  so 
kind,  affectionate  and  unselfish,  would  certainly  be  the 
stay  and  staff  of  the  younger  children  if  he  were  once 
placed  in  circumstances  favoring  his  natural  promptings; 
and  he  decided  that  instead  of  entering  the  ministry,  he 
should  go  to  a  merchant's  office.  That  was  reasonable 
and  judicious  enough,  but  what  about  theology  2  for  that 
was  the  secret  yearning,  the  daily  prayer  of  his  wife,  and 
that  was  ever  uppermost  in  the  heart  and  mind  of  John. 
Why  then  did  he  propose,  for  propose  he  certainly  did, 
that  what  he  knew  would  give  pain  and  sorrow  all 
around  ?  The  pecuniary  argument  did  not  apply  here, 
for  friends  and  assistance,  to  say  nothing  of  faith  in  God, 
would  certainly  have  been  found,  as  eventually  they  were 
found.  What  then  were  the  reasons,  which  he,  as  a 
clergyman,  had  to  oppose  to  the  darling  desire  of  his 
wife  and  of  his  son  ?  He  lived  in  sad  times;  he  was  not 
only  half  starved,  but  he  felt  in  bitterness  of  soul  that 


14  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

the  ministry  was  scorned  and  despised,  like  Christianity 
itself,  by  a  skeptical,  free-thinking,  rationalistic  but  irra- 
tional generation.  To  study  theology,  to  preach  Chris- 
tian doctrine  as  taught  in  the  New  Testament,  and  to 
enter  the  church,  were  in  the  public  estimate  to  study, 
preach  and  practise  hypocrisy.  This  sentiment  v/as  so 
universally  held,  that  the  poor  assistant  minister,  who 
was  half  starved  to  death,  and  had  to  toil  like  a  slave, 
felt  himself  daily  and  hourly  insulted  in  the  thought  and 
speech  of  his  contemporaries.  It  was  a  galling  thought, 
and  he  felt  that  though  such  torture  and  excruciating 
agony  might  be  borne  by  him,  yet  as  far  as  he  might  be 
able  to  prevent  it,  it  should  not  be  endured  by  his  noble, 
pure,  true,  sensitive  and  scrupulously  conscientious  John, 
and  therefore  he  told  him,  "You  must  not  become  a 
minister;  it  would  kill  you;  the  vv^orld  is  too  corrupt;  and 
you  are  too  conscientious  to  submit  to  the  hardships  of 
the  ministry."  It  was  a  sore  trial  to  them  all,  when  against 
the  wishes  of  the  good  mother,  against  the  entreaties  of  Di- 
rector Hamann,  and  against  the  boy's  own  deep  and  invin- 
cible yearnings,  he  was  removed  from  the  Secimda  (the  sec- 
ond class)  to  a  merchant's  office,  and  had  to  study  French 
and  Polish  in  place  of  the  classics.  But  John  was  not  to  be 
a  merchant ;  the  work  did  not  agree  with  him,  he  grew  sick- 
ly and  the  good  assistant  minister  became  convinced  that 
it  was  an  intimation  of  Providence  to  cease  his  opposition  to 
the  desire  and  entreaties  of  all  concerned,  and  thus  he  con- 
sented to  his  return  to  school  and  the  prosecution  of  his 
preparatory  studies  in  Pf-ima  (/.  e.  the  highest  class). 

There  Hamann  taught  almost  exclusively.  His  method 
was  singularly  lucid  and  stimulative,  and  his  influence 
magnetic.  In  the  class-room,  he  taught^  and  understood 
to  inspire  his  pupils  with  an  enthusiastic  thirst  for  knov/1- 


EARLY   YEARS.  1 5 

edge.  There  was  no  slavish,  mechanical  committal  of 
the  dull,  packed  sections  and  paragraphs  of  text  books, 
alike  suicidal  to  independent  thought  and  the  mastering 
of  a  subject,  alike  injurious  to  teacher  and  taught.  His 
method  was  oral  instruction  of  an  uncommonly  well- 
informed,  original  mind,  conveyed  in  warm,  earnest,  con- 
vincing strains  to  eager,  ambitious  students.  He  urged 
them  to  go  beyond  the  prescript  curriculum  and  read  con- 
jointly at  home  selected  portions  of  classical  authors,  and 
of  German  writers.  This  advice  was  not  neglected  by 
John,  who  derived  great  benefit  from  the  judicious  and 
diligent  improvement  of  his  spare  time. 

In  his  parental  home  Sunday  was  kept,  neither  accord- 
ing to  the  prevailing  spirit  of  desecration,  nor  according 
to  the  Mosaic  literalness  of  Puritanic  sabbath  observance. 
His  father  recommended  and  practised  a  middle  course; 
all  work  proper  was  rigidly  forbidden,  /,  e.  all  regular 
work  ;  work  belonging  to  the  week  days,  which  included 
of  course  school  work,  was  relegated  to  week-days. 
First  came  public  worship,  and  then  social  intercourse  ; 
the  two  were  not  treated  as  incompatibles,  but  as  comple- 
mentaries ;  and  while  social  intercourse  admitted  of 
pastime  and  recreation,  it  allowed  likev/ise  private 
reading  or  the  study  of  favorite  authors  ;  the  latter  was 
John's  way  of  filling  the  leisure  hours  of  the  Lord's  Day. 
Gellert's  Moral  Prelections,  and  J.  P.  Miller's  Moral  De- 
liiieaiions^  he  found  peculiarly  attractive.  Works  of  a 
philosophical  and  religious  tone  seemed  to  charm  him 
most.  As  Hamann's  views  of  Christianity  were  de- 
cidedly negative,  and  the  prevailing  sentiment  at  Konigs- 
berg  in  general,  and  in  the  Latin   school  in  particular, 

*  Schaffhausen,  1779. 


l6  FAITH  VICTORIOUS. 

ran  in  the  same  direction,  there  was  a  good  deal  of  re- 
ligious, or  more  truly,  of  irreligious  controversy  among 
the  pupils.  Among  them  was  one  who  loved  to  fire  the 
salvos  of  Voltaire  and  Rousseau  at  Christianity,  and  pro- 
voked John,  who  even  then  clung  to  his  religious  convic- 
tion with  that  intensity  of  persistence  which  is  almost 
always  allied  to  natures  whom  the  French  call  entier,  to 
vindicate  it  from  the  aspersions  he  cast  upon  it.  This 
prompted  him  to  ransack  the  well-stocked  and  carefully 
selected  library  of  his  father  for  apologetic  works,  and  to 
master  their  arguments  against  scoffers  and  skeptics. 
Thus  he  became,  at  a  comparatively  early  period,  fa- 
miliar e.  g.  with  Lilienthal's  Gtite  Sache,^  and  many  other 
thoughtful  works,  whose  persual  led  him  to  think  and 
form  independent  opinions  in  a  field  of  theological  in- 
quiry for  which  he  appeared  to  be  peculiarly  fitted,  and 
in  which  he  speedily  earned  golden  laurels.  He  read 
fast,  and  acquired  the  useful  habit  of  keeping  the  run  of, 
and  acquaintance  with  new  publications,  especially  peri- 
odical literature,  to  which  he  devoted  his  leisure  mo- 
ments at  meals.  The  books  he  studied  were  of  a  weighty 
sort,  on  topics  connected  with  philosophy  and  theology  ; 
and  as  he  was  wont  to  take  notes  and  extracts  as  he 
went  along,  every  department  of  human  knowledge  was 
made  to  contribute  to  his  intellectual  outfit.  At  that 
time  his  memory  was  more  tenacious  of  facts,  and  the 
true  essence  of  any  matter  he  might  have  in  hand,  than 
of  literal  technicalities. 

Hamann,  the  head  of  the  Latin  School,  was  the  son  of 
a  very  remarkable  man,  Johann  Georg  Hamann,  who, 
from  his  own  no?n  de  plume,  is  known  in  literature  as  the 

*  Konigsberg,   1760. 


EARLY   YEARS.  1 7 

"  Magus  of  the  North."  As  a  writer  he  is  humorous, 
rather  cynical,  but  all  his  sentiments  are  dipped  in  Chris- 
tianity ;  his  philosophy  is  essentially  Christian  and  bibli- 
cal. Herder  said  that  "  every  thought  of  his  is  an  un- 
strung pearl,  wrapped  in  the  very  words  without  which 
it  could  neither  have  been  thought  nor  spoken." 

The  son  did  not  in  any  way  share  the  religious  convic- 
tions of  his  sire,  but  deemed  them  foolishness,  and  had  a 
very  reprehensible  way  of  ridiculing  and  sneering  at  the 
dogmas  of  the  Christian  verity.  His  innuendoes,  often 
thrust  at  John,  neither  shook  his  faith,  nor  weakened  the 
affectionate  relations  which  marked  his  intercourse  with 
Hamann.  When  he  left  school  in  1801,  the  official  testi- 
monial, here  produced,  reflects  the  opinion  which  had 
been  formed  of  him  by  his  teachers  :  "  Johannes  Wil- 
helm  Ebel,  of  Passenheim  in  Prussia,  has  been  for  six 
years  a  pupil  of  this  school.  Throughout  that  period  he 
has  been  continuously  diligent  and  unremittingly  devoted 
to  his  studies.  Having  utilized  every  moment  of  his 
time,  his  progress  in  scientific  knowledge  has  been  so 
satisfactory,  that  in  the  unanimous  and  commendatory 
judgment  of  the  officially  appointed  examiners,  he  has 
been  found  qualified  to  frequent  the  free  halls  of  aca- 
demical learning,  it  being  his  intention  to  study  theology. 
His  disposition  is  so  singularly  friendly  and  amiable  that 
we  cannot  part  with  him  without  sorrow  ;  and  we  may 
confidently  predict  that  in  this  respect  he  will  remain 
unchanged.  Our  cordial  wishes  for  prosperity  in  all  his 
efforts  and  undertakings  accompany  him." 

Before  following  him  to  the  university,  the  extraordi- 
nary diligence  and  application  referred  to  in  the  testi- 
monial, need  an  explanatory  word.  Besides  his  regular 
school  duties,  he  was  obliged  to   supervise  and  help  a 


1 8  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

younger  brother  and  several  boarders  in  his  father's 
famijy,  in  the  preparation  of  their  school  exercises.  His 
own  statement,  made  at  a  subsequent  period,  sheds  light 
on  this  matter :  "  As  the  child  of  poor  parents,  I  was 
compelled,  since  my  fifteenth  year,  to  contribute  to  my 
own  support  by  giving  private  lessons  ;  and  after  my 
eighteenth  year  to  assist  in  the  maintenance  of  my 
father's  family  by  spending  simultaneously  with  niy  aca- 
demical studies,  daily,  five  hours  in  a  public  school,  as  my 
father's  substitute,  who  on  account  of  sickness,  was  un- 
able to  do  the  work." 

The  relations  to  his  fellovz-students  were  most  cordial 
and  pleasant.  Of  a  peaceful  temperament,  he  had  no 
quarrels  of  his  own,  but  was  successful  in  composing 
those  of  others.  Fond  of  mirth  and  harmless  pleasures, 
and  averse  to  exclusiveness,  he  bore  his  part  in  the  pub- 
lic social  gatherings  of  the  students,  who  liked  his  frank 
and  cheerful  demeanor.  The  same  diligence  and  appli- 
cation which  had  marked  his  course  at  school  character- 
ized his  progress  at  the  university.  The  circle  of  his 
acquaintance  was  quite  extensive,  and  he  enjoyed  the 
esteem  and  affection  of  his  fellow-students  ;  but  he  had 
not  found  among  them  a  really  intimate  or  truly  con- 
genial friend.  Nor  is  this  matter  of  surprise,  if  ^Ye  bear 
in  mind  the  deep,  strong  religious  convictions  which 
colored  all  his  efforts  and  inspirations,  and  contrast  them 
with  the  frivolity  and  irreligion  which  animated  the  aca- 
demic youth  of  the  period.  They  simply  reflected  the 
prevalent  sentiment  that  religion  was  hypocrisy,  and 
would  often  tease  him  with  the  jocose  inquiry,  how  he 
would  ever  manage  to  get  along  as  d,  priest  (Pfaffe),  as 
he  was  not  cut  out  for  a  hypocrite.  The  contemptuous- 
ness  of  the  word  Pfaffe  which  they  used,  does  not  attach 


EARLY   YEARS.  I9 

to  the  English  priest ;  it  is  generally  employed  with  a 
liberal  infusion  of  envenomed  hatred  and  derision. 

Soon  after  entering  the  university,  John  had  the  great 
sorrow  to  lose  his  good  mother  after  a  fortnight's  illness. 
She  died  as  a  true  Christian.  After  taking  leave  of  all 
the  rest,  she  beckoned  John  to  her  side,  and  poured  into 
his  ears  her  deep  and  intense  love  ;  she  told  him  how  it 
had  been  the  ardent,  never-dying  yearning  of  her  soul 
that  he  should  be  a  minister  of  the  Word  ;  that  that  had 
been  her  prayer  before  he  was  born  ;  that  her  husband's 
opposition  had  caused  her  unspeakable  pain,  and  almost 
made  her  uncertain  as  to  what  might  be  the  will  of  God 
in  the  matter;  but  that  now  everything  seemed  to  point 
so  clearly  in  one  direction,  that  she  felt  sure  that  her 
prayer  would  be  heard,  and  that  he  would  not  study  law, 
as  his  father  seemed  to  desire.  Then  she  blessed  him, 
adding  in  great  tenderness:  "If  all  my  prayers  for  you 
are  heard,  my  child,  you  will  be  the  happiest  of  the  chil- 
dren of  men."  Her  last  v/ords  were  :  "  Indeed  you  will 
and  must  needs  prosper,  for  you  have  caused  us  nothing 
but  joy."  That  sainted  mother's  life-long  prayers  and 
dying  benediction  were  ratified  on  high,  for  the  child  of 
so  many  prayers  grew  to  become  a  man  of  prayer,  ever 
ineffably  happy  in  the  love  of  Christ,  and  impressing  all 
that  knew  him  with  the  placid  serenity  that  was  mirrored 
in  his  mind  and  life,  though  storms  of  trials  and  tempests 
of  adversity  beat  upon  his  soul. 

Schulz  and  Hasse  were  foremost  among  the  theologi- 
ans whom  John  heard.  The  views  of  the  former  w^ere 
orthodox,  i.  e.  biblical,  those  of  the  latter  neological. 
While  his  sympathies  went  out  to  the  first,  he  could  not 
withhold  his  admiration  from  the  straightforward,  out- 
spoken frankness  and  native  truthfulness  of  the  second, 


20  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

and  he  attended  almost  all  his  prelections  on  the  the- 
ology, paedagogics  and  the  Oriental  languages.  Hasse's 
hetorodoxy  did  not  in  any  way  contaminate  the  strong 
biblical  bias  of  our  young  theological  student,  who  very 
judiciously  sought  for  breadth  of  view,  and  toiled  and 
struggled  to  find  the  true  and  trusty  foundation  of  the 
love  of  Jesus,  in  the  conflict  of  philosophical  and  theo- 
logical opinions  which  must  often  have  seemed  to  him  a 
veritable  Babel  for  confusion  and  contradiction.  He  was 
passing  through  the  great  ordeal  which  was  to  test  the 
purity,  strength  and  sincerity  of  his  religious  convictions. 
Such  an  ordeal  to  true  and  conscientious  minds  is  harder 
intellectually  and  emotionally  than  the  material  ordeal 
of  fire  and  water  of  which  we  read  in  history.  There  is 
a  crisis  in  the  theological  culture  of  every  student  when 
he  must  form  opinions  based  on  the  study  of  the  Scrip- 
tures, and  where  the  ipse  dixit  of  the  professor  is  rarely 
satisfactory.  He  must  think  for  himself ;  he  wants  rea- 
sons for  his  belief  ;  reasons  for  his  convictions  ;  and  the 
question  comes  sometimes  with  irresistible  force  :  Which 
is  stronger  ?  where  are  the  strongest  proofs  ?  what  am  I 
to  believe  ?  am  I  to  follow  the  promptings  of  personal 
inclination  ?  or  must  I  sacrifice  personal  inclination  to 
the  superior  experience  of  my  teacher,  and  the  still  higher 
claims  of  truth  ?  And  what  is  truth  ?  In  English  and 
American  theological  seminaries  the  difficulties  are  not 
anything  as  great  as  those  which  beset  the  path  of  a 
student  in  a  German  university,  where  professors  of  al- 
most every  diversity  of  theological  belief  or  unbelief  are 
at  liberty  to  unfold  their  respective  views,  while  the  stu- 
dents are  not  compelled  to  attend  the  lectures  of  men 
all  of  the  same  stripe,  but  at  liberty  to  hear  whom  they 
choose.     In   the   midst  of  such   a  chaos  of  conflicting 


EARLY   YEARS.  21 

opinions  stood  young  Ebel,  doubtful,  hesitating,  swayed 
hither  and  thither,  humble-minded  and  in  danger  of  los- 
ing his  self-reliance ;  eager  and  strong  in  long-cherished 
feelings,  and  in  danger  of  sacrificing  truth  to  inclination  ; 
he  weighed  and  balanced  thought  with  thought,  referred 
what  he  heard  and  read  to  the  word  of  God,  and  sought 
for  light  and  direction  in  habitual  intercourse  with  God 
in  prayer.  The  possession  of  the  truth,  no  matter  from 
which  quarter  it  came  to  him,  grasped  in  faith,  held  con- 
scientiously and  in  charity,  that  was  his  aim,  and  in  the 
congenial  soil  of  such  an  aim  rooted  the  impartiality  and 
conscientiousness  which  are  conspicuous  traits  of  his 
character. 

Thoroughly  unsettled  on  matters  where  doubt  and 
perplexity  mean  unhappiness,  and  where  indecision  makes 
confusion  worse  confounded,  Ebel  was  wondering  where 
the  solution  might  lie — whether  after  all  that  good 
mother's  prayers,  and  her  prophetic  utterances,  after 
all,  and  notwithstanding  all  his  own  most  cherished  feel- 
ings, it  were  not  wiser  and  better,  whether  it  were  not 
right  for  him  to  abandon  theology  and  turn  pedagogue, 
or  whether  he  should  persevere  and  struggle  on,  de- 
termined to  succeed  ?  Just  at  that  critical  moment  the 
matter  was  decided  for  him  in  a  way  which  is  best  given 
in  his  own  words  : 

"  I  was  eighteen  years  old,  when  I  heard  a  friend  of  our 
family  state  incidentally  that  he  had  become  acquainted  with 
a  man  (Johann  Heinrich  Schonherr)  who  had  successfully 
established  a  perfect  agreement  of  the  whole  Bible,  even  as 
to  its  verbal  declarations,  by  proofs  of  reason,  with  a  force  of 
conviction  simply  irresistible,  and  all  but  unanswerable  by 
scoffing  unbelievers.  Like  a  light  from  heaven  this  glorious 
news  shed  its  gladsome  beams  into  my  heart  of  hearts,  and 


22  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

joy  unspeakable  took  hold  of  my  being-.  It  seemed  as  if  all 
the  dreadful  questionings,  which  rose  unbidden,  and  which  I 
trembled  to  formulate,  were  answered,  as  if  all  darkness  were 
dispelled,  and  that  a  sweet  presentiment  overcame  me,  whis- 
pering the  fulfilment  of  my  deepest  longings.  From  a  child 
brought  up  in  reverence  of  the  word  of  God,  the  doubts  of 
its  truth  and  the  contradiction  of  its  declarations,  vociferously 
uttered  all  around  me  by  my  teachers  and  fellow-students, 
could  not  fail  to  disquiet  my  heart,  and  to  hold  it  in  anxious', 
painful  suspense.  When  I  tried  to  meet  and  oppose  them,  I 
would,  after  long  and  idle  contendings,  retire  to  a  corner  of 
my  attic  room,  shed  bitter  tears,  and  pour  out  my  heart 
before  God,  accusing  and  condemning  myself,  and  bewailing 
my  inability  to  save  His  word  from  defamation,  and  to  vindi- 
cate its  declarations  from  the  foul  aspersions  and  criticisms 
of  the  rationalists.  This  anxious  and  agonizing  pain  were  all 
the  greater  because  I  cherished  the  desire  to  study  theology  ; 
but  that  darling  wish,  I  felt,  must  be  abandoned,  as  far  as  I 
felt  myself  unable  to  grapple  with  the  adversaries,  and  shrunk 
from  the  thought  of  appearing  in  the  pulpit  with  the  Bible  in 
my  hand,  and  thoughts  inimical  or  conflicting  with  its  truths 
in  my  mind — in  other  words,  of  preaching  in  opposition  to 
conviction.  ...  In  the  midst  of  this  soul-struggle,  in  the 
midst  of  fears  and  longings,  that  blessed  beam  brought  light. 
The  good  news  of  my  friend,  that  reason  and  revelation  were 
in  agreement,  and  that  the  man  who  had  succeeded  to  estab- 
lish that  agreement,  was  still  in  the  land  of  the  living."* 

Opportunity  for  personal  acquaintance  with  Schon- 
herr  soon  occurred  in  a  house  which  both  were  in  the 
habit  of  visiting.  Ebel  was  at  that  time  a  handsome, 
thoughtful  youth  of  eighteen  ;  Schonherr  a  man  of  thirty- 
two.      The  singular  seriousness  and  devout  veneration  of 

*  Ebel  Schliissel  zur  Erkenntniss  der  Wahrheit,  Leipzig,  1837, 
p.  I. 


EARLY   YEARS.  23 

Holy  Scripture  which  marked  the  attitude  of  Ebel,  and 
singled  him  out  from  other  students  who  were  wont  to 
ridicule  and  belittle  the  inspired  volume,  did  not  escape 
Schonherr.  He  took  a  lively  interest  in  Ebel,  who  lis- 
tened in  profound  and  respectful  attention  to  the  mighty 
and  well  nigh  wonderful  utterance  of  that  noble  and 
richly  gifted  man.  It  sometimes  happens  that  intellec- 
tual or  moral  affinities  which  attract  men  to  each  other 
are  accompanied  by  physical  resemblance.  This  was 
noticed  by  one  v/ho  saw  Schonherr  and  Ebel  together, 
and  recorded  it  many  years  afterwards  in  these  words : 

"  His  very  features  remind  me  of  Schonherr,  although 
Ebel  is  more  handsome,  and  his  carriage  and  speech 
exhibit  a  higher  degree  of  refinement  and  culture." 

The  dualistic  principle  so  emphatically  presented  by 
Schonherr,  and  diametrically  opposed  to  the  current 
ideas  on  the  relation  of  matter  and  mind,  to  the  Coper- 
nican  system,  and  other  prevailing  tendencies,  startled 
the  young  student,  and  he  was  far  from  being  in  accord 
with  it.  Its  affinity  and  consonance  with  Holy  Scripture, 
as  maintained  by  Schonherr,  came  not  with  the  force  of 
immediate  conviction.  On  the  contrary,  he  opposed  it 
for  years  with  every  weapon  which  the  study  of  meta- 
physics, and  a  certain  hardness  of  believing  engendered 
by  it,  were  able  to  furnish ;  and  it  was  not  until  after 
long  and  earnest  resistance  that  he  struggled  into  a 
position  where,  simultaneously  with  the  reception  of  the 
Bible  as  the  inspired  word  of  God,  he  attained  the 
delightful  assurance  of  conviction  that  there  is  a  way  to 
read  and  understand  that  Word,  which  puts  its  declara- 
tions in  perfect  harmony  with  the  results  of  reasonable 
inquiry  and  the  phenomena  of  nature.* 

*  Ebel,  Gcschichte  des  Fiiedrichs  Collcgii,  p.  62. 


24  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

A  few  words  on  this  subject  seem  to  be  in  place 
here ;  for  a  fuller  account  the  Appendix  B  may  be  con- 
sulted. 

Prompted  by  an  invincible  desire  for  clear  convictions 
on  the  subject  of  immortality,  Schonherr,  in  the  course 
of  his  studies  on  the  origin  of  the  world,  thought  he 
had  made  the  discovery  that  water  is  the  primary  matter 
and  light  the  formative  principle.  He  read  in  the  Bible 
that  a  plurality  of  Eloliim  had  been  engaged  in  the  work 
of  creation,  and  the  thought  took  shape  in  his  mind  that 
nature  is  pervaded  by  two  principles  in  perfect  analogy 
to  the  biblical  Elohim.  Two  of  his  friends,  in  a  work 
published  after  his  death,*  declare  that  he  would  not 
have  cognized  the  existence  of  the  two  primary  Beings 
in  the  world  of  creation  from  the  word  "Elohim,"  or 
been  able  to  develop  the  thought  and  doctrine  of  the 
creation  of  the  world  by  their  eternal,  uncreated  and  im- 
perishable existence,  if  the  spirit  of  Truth  had  not  first 
led  him  to  the  study  of  nature,  and  allowed  him  to  see 
there — at  first  darkly,  indistinctly,  and,  as  it  were,  from 
a  distance — what  Holy  Scripture  teaches  in  the  history 
of  creation.  Like  St.  Paul,  he  took  hints  for  the  knowl- 
edge of  God  from  what  he  saw  in  the  works  of  creation, 
and  rose  from  nature  to  nature's  God.  It  was  a  revela- 
tion that  filled  him  vvdth  joy  unspeakably  grateful.  "  Crea- 
tion," he  said,  "is  a  sealed  book  ;  the  Bible  breaks  the 
seal.  Who  does  not  understand  the  Bible,  does  not 
understand  creation  ;  not  because  he  cajinot  find  within 
and  round  about  him^self  the  truths  taught  in  the  Bible, 
but  because  he  has  not  yet  foimd  them  there.    And  does 

*  Johann  Heinrich  Schonherr  unci  die  von  ihm  erkamite  IVahr' 
hcit,  Konigsberg,  1834,  part  I.  p.  29,  sqq. 


EARLY   YEARS.  2$ 

this  not  hold  good  of  all  knowledge  ?  We  have  only 
words  as  long  as  reason  and  experience  have  not  enabled 
us  to  know  and  understand  the  objects  they  designate. 
You  may  tell  one  that  has  never  seen  the  light  much  of 
its  nature  and  properties  ;  he  hears  what  you  tell  him, 
and  remembers  the  words,  but  he  does  not  know  the 
lightr'' 

Moreover,  he  took  note  that  while  the  Bible  does  not 
mention  the  creation  of  water,  it  seems  to  intimate  that  it 
is  the  primary  matter  in  2  Pet.  iii.  5  :  "  For  this  they  will- 
ingly are  ignorant  of,  that  by  the  word  of  God  the 
heavens  were  of  old,  and  the  earth  consisting  out  of 
water,  and  in  water."  In  the  history  of  the  creation,  we 
read  that  "  the  Spirit  of  God  was  moving  upon  the  face 
of  the  waters."  He  held  firmly  that  Moses  preached  one 
God  ;  but  Moses  names  Elohim,  and  alternately  em- 
ploys the  words  Elohim  and  Jehovah  ;  that,  he  thought 
must  have  a  reason  and  a  design.  The  concept  of  God 
was  to  him  a  concept  of  correlation,  according  to  which 
he  thought  of  God  as  the  Supreme,  the  Most  High,  Most 
Mighty,  Most  Wise  Being,  and  felt  constrained — un- 
less he  should  speculate  beyond  what  Scripture  declares 
on  the  subject — to  regard  Him  not  as  the  Sole  Original, 
Primary  Being,  without  whom  there  never  existed  any- 
thing at  any  time,  but  biblically,  as  the  Supreme,  Primary 
Being,  as  the  Jehovah  of  the  Elohim.  God  is  to  him 
the  only  Almighty  God,  Creator  of  all  things  ;  but,  he 
opined,  if  there  had  never  been  another  Being  beside 
Himself,  not  anything  would  ever  have  come  into  being  ; 
he  took  umbrage  at  the  notion  of  a  creation  out  of  noth- 
ing, and  deemed  it  absurd  ;  and  if  that  notion  were  meant 

*  Schonherr,  Sieg  der  Gottlichen  Offenbarung,  p.  4. 


26  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

to  express  that  the  creation  was  the  effect  of  the 
almighty  will  of  God,  that  would  make  it  unsubstantial 
and  contrary  to  all  experience,  which  coincides  with  the 
biblical  representation  of  God  always  working  by  means. 
He  thought,  with  others  since  his  day,  that  it  is  a  senile 
prejudice  to  reduce  the  creation  to  a  si7igle  principle,  and 
unwarranted  temerity  to  leave  the  discovered  traces  of 
the  Bible.  Neither  the  fiction  that  Elohim  designates 
the  sacred  Trinity,  nor  the  makeshift  of  its  being  2.  pluralis 
majestaticus  *  deterred  Schonherr  from  stoutly  maintain- 
ing that  Elohim  must  be  more  than  Elohah  ;  that  a 
iplvLial/brm  must  originally  have  been  connected  with  a 
plurality  of  persons^  and  that  the  Elohim  designates  a 
real  plurality. 

It  is  proper  to  emphasize  here  that  it  v/as  not  Schon- 
herr's  dualism,  but  his  reception  of  the  Bible  as  the  word 
of  God,  which  attracted  Ebel ;  that  he  made  very  clear 
in  later  years,  when  under  the  imputation  of  sectarian 
tendencies  he  was  the  subject  of  an  almost  unparalleledly 
wicked  persecution,  and  declared  ad  acta  .•  "  I  confess 
from  the  bottom  of  my  heart,  that  I  value  Schonherr's 
theory,  solely  because  it  appears  to  me  to  have  greater 
biblical  authority,  as  far  as  man  can  determine  it,  than 
other  theories.  If  it  does  not  agree  with  the  Bible,  I  am 
still  prepared  to  fling  it  aside  as  trash." 

It  was  a  curious  age,  that  age  of  enlightenment,  in 
which  the  shape  of  man's  coat,  or  the  cut  and  length  of 
his  beard,  were  regarded  as  essentials  of  respectability 

*  Ewald,  Hebr.  Grammar,  §  361,  denies  that  the  Hebrew  lan- 
guage has  any  feeling  for  a  so-called  phiralis  majestaticus,  and  ac- 
counts for  the  plural  form  of  Elohim,  because,  according  to  the 
conception  of  the  ancients,  the  Deity  was  thought  as  infinitely  nu- 
merous, and  divisible,  and  yet  conjoined. 


EARLY   YEARS.  2J 

and  even  of  orthodoxy.  Poor  Schonherr  liked  to  wear 
a  long  coat,  and  his  medical  adviser  had  recommended 
him  to  let  his  hair  and  beard  grow  long.  That  was 
enough  to  the  men  of  his  generation  to  deprive  him  of 
both  respectability  and  orthodoxy  ;  but  then  the  of- 
ficial (/.  e.  secular)  orthodox  belief  of  the  period  was 
rank  infidelity,  and  hatred  of  religion  and  morality,  and 
thus  it  came  to  pass,  that  to  walk  with  Schonherr  in  the 
streets  of  Konigsberg,  was  a  stone  of  stumbling,  and  a 
rock  of  offence.  Schonherr  was  peculiar,  one-sided,  rode 
hobbies  ;  but  are  we  not  all  peculiar,  more  or  less  one- 
sided, and  do  not  we  ride  hobbies  ?  Yet  he  was  through 
and  through  a  good  man  and  true,  singularly  gifted,  and 
an  enthusiast,  vastly  superior  to  many  other  enthusiasts, 
clean-shaven  and  long-bearded,  in  costume  Oriental  or 
Occidental.  And  Ebel  was  not  the  man  to  take  umbrage 
at  such  trifles,  and  he  stuck  to  his  friend.  And  his 
friend  he  was,  and  remained,  and  proved  it  on  many  oc- 
casions, but  chiefly  in  telHng  him  the  truth.  As  Schon- 
herr never  founded  a  sect,  neither  Ebel,  nor  others  who 
adopted  some  of  his  views,  and  held  them  as  private, 
could  be  called  his  followers  or  adherents  ;  if  that  were 
so,  a  many-sided  man,  or  a  man  of  great  and  varied  cul- 
ture, who  adopts  all  sorts  of  views  from  all  sorts  of 
people  might  be  accused  of  almost  every  heresy  under 
heaven,  and  of  being  tinged  with  the  most  contradictory 
sectarian  tendencies;  if  heresy  and  sect-hunting  were 
carried  on  in  the  spirit  which  forty  years  ago  existed  in 
Prussia,  many  a  prelate  might  tremble  in  his  shoes,  many 
a  professor  would  be  cashiered,  many  a  priest  would  be 
unfrocked. 

At  this  early  period   Ebel   regarded   Schonherr  as  a 
great  benefactor,  in  having  helped  him  out  of  the  dark- 


28  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

ness  of  doubt  and  perplexity  into  the  sunlight  of  un- 
dimmed,  childlike  faith  in  the  word  of  God.  In  the 
principle  of  the  two  primary  Beings  he  saw  a  key  to  the 
proper  understanding  of  nature  and  revelation  ;  a  key, 
not  of  magnetic  virtue,  so  that  at  its  approach  all  locks 
must  open  spontaneously,  but  a  key  of  the  ordinary  sort, 
requiring  careful  fitting  and  careful  handling,  and  beyond 
that  he  really  never  went  with  Schonherr,  to  whom  he 
always  felt  grateful  for  that  early  guidance  at  a  most 
critical  period  of  his  life.  That  principle  enabled  Ebel 
to  solve  to  himself  the  imystery — for  it  is  truly  a  mystery 
or  a  secret  disclosed — of  human  freedom,  which  he  felt 
cannot  be  explained  on  any  other  basis  so  as  to  meet  the 
statements  of  Holy  Scripture  and  convince  the  under- 
standing ;  it  enabled  him  to  see  man  under  the  influence 
of  two  powers  ;  it  enabled  him,  likewise,  better  to  un- 
derstand the  biblical  dogma  of  the  devil ;  to  form  a 
lofty,  true  and  delightful  conception  of  the  truths  of  sal- 
vation, of  the  lofty  position  of  man,  of  his  high  and 
glorious  destiny,  and  of  the  establishment  of  the  king- 
dom of  heaven,  all  of  which  were  treated  at  the  time  as 
idle  imaginings,  allegorized  into  poetic  myths  or  ex- 
plained away  by  methods  of  interpretation  often  as  con- 
temptible in  the  interpreters  as  they  were  insulting  to 
hearers  and  readers  alike.  But  Ebel  was  fortified  by 
Schonherr  in  his  strong  biblical  bias  to  accept  the  verbal 
inspiration  of  the  Bible  ;  and  how  -Schonherr  reasoned 
and  expressed  himself,  and  how  his  impassioned  utter- 
ances must  have  delighted  the  ears  and  rejoiced  the 
heart  of  the  ardent  youth  the  reader  may  judge  of  from 
a  few  samples  gathered  at  random  from  his  writings  and 
placed  in  Appendix  B, 

In  the  meantime  the  meeting  with  Schonherr  decided 


EARLY   YEARS.  29 

his  course  ;  thenceforth  theology  was  to  be  his  study, 
and  to  win  souls  for  Christ  and  work  towards  the  setting 
up  of  Christ's  kingdom  his  prayerful  vocation.  For  that 
he  was  indebted  to  the  friendship  of  Schonherr ;  but  it 
was  a  friendship  that  had  much  to  try  him,  as  the  sequel 
will  show. 


CHAPTER  II. 

EARLY      MINISTRY. 

Ebel  passed  the  examination  of  candidate  in  theology 
before  the  theological  faculty  at  Konigsberg  in  1804,  and 
according  to  usage,  began  what  may  be  called  his  novi- 
tiate as  collaborator  or  assistant  in  a  school,  under  the 
direction  of  Dr.  Hamann,  to  which  he  was  preferred 
through  the  interest  and  influence  of  his  old  master. 
Familiar  intercourse  with  experienced  and  able  educa- 
tors proved  highly  beneficial  to  the  young  candidate, 
quick  and  apt  to  turn  his  opportunities  to  good  account. 
Besides  certain  secular  branches,  he  was  specially  charged 
with  the  religious  instruction  of  the  whole  school  from 
Secunda  downwards.  His  relations  to  the  other  teachers 
were  very  cordial,  and  to  the  pupils  singularly  delightful ; 
he  knew  the  secret  of  commanding  their  affections,  and 
the  religious  recitations,  as  a  rule  the  least  affected  in 
gymnasia,  were  the  most  popular  in  the  school.  This 
speaks  volumes  for  the  tact  and  heart  of  a  teacher  able 
to  establish  such  happy  relations  to  his  pupils,  for  it 
points  unmistakably  to  sincere  and  warm  feelings  on  his 
part,  which  youth  is  ever  ready  to  reciprocate.  They 
loved  him,  and  therefore  strove  to  please  him  in  every 
way,  and  it  is  touching  to  read  that  two  or  three  me- 

30 


EARLY   MINISTRY.  3 1 

mentos  of  trifling  value,  presented  to  him  by  his  pupils, 
were  unspeakably  precious  to  him  even  in  old  age,  when 
he  would  feelingly  point  to  a  pocket-book,  an  album, 
and  a  small  goblet,  inscribed  with  the  words,  "  in  token 
of  grateful  love."  The  secret  of  his  success  as  a  teacher 
of  religion  may  be  expressed  in  a  single  sentence,  "  cheer- 
fulness and  godliness."  He  believed  more  in  the  force 
of  example  than  in  the  force  of  precept ;  uniformly 
cheerful  himself,  kind,  sympathetic,  and  averse  to  sanc- 
timonious language,  he  understood  to  convince  his  youth- 
ful friends  that  the  cheerfulness  which  springs  from  a 
heart  aglow  with  the  love  of  God  and  a  good  con- 
science is  not  only  compatible  with  sincere  piety  and 
holiness,  but  its  necessary  concomitant.  His  views 
on  this  subject  are  truly  admirable,  and  may  be  read 
at  length  in  a  volume  which  bears  the  title,  ''^Ueber 
gedeihliche  Erziehung^''  Hamburg,  1825,  from  which  I 
select  the  following  passage  as  applicable  now  as  it 
was  half  a  century  ago.  His  topic  is  godly  cheerful- 
ness as  the  true  means  of  inculcating  piety  in  the  heart 
of  youth,  and  its  example  as  the  best  way  to  accomplish 
it ;  he  says  : 

"  How  different  would  the  world  be,  if  teachers  were  to 
deal  with  their  dear  children  in  this  spirit.  We  should  not 
see  the  pious  contortions  of  countenance,  religious  curvatures 
and  holy  inclinings,  or  hear  the  devout  groans  of  a  class  of 
people  who  think  that  they  render  God  service  in  the  out- 
ward show  of  repentance,  and  who  though  under  the  care  of 
the  heavenly  Physician  appear  like  sickly  invalids  all  the 
days  of  their  life.  How  much  more  profitable  for  all  to  know 
that  as  a  judicious  earthly  physician  likes  nothing  better  in 
his  patients  than  a  cheerful  look,  provided  they  do  not  overdo 
it,  so  the  heavenly  Physician  loves  cheerful  courage   in  His 


32  FAITH  VICTORIOUS. 

patients,  and  welcomes  it  as  the  fit  concomitant  of  His 
grace,  whereas  intentional  dejectedness  invariably  cometh  of 
evil.  Then  the  voice  of  joy  and  the  voice  of  gladsome  praise 
would  again  go  out  into  all  the  world  (Jer.  xxxi.  12,  13  ;  xxiii. 
II,  12);  young  men  and  old  would  rejoice  together  before  their 
God  ;  and  the  world  would  not  be  ashamed  to  blend  its  song 
with  the  birds',  as  they  sing  among  the  branches,  as  a  tribute 
of  praise  for  the  glories  of  creation  offered  to  the  author  of 
gladness  and  joy.  No  one  would  take  umbrage  if  people  of 
culture  conversed  as  freely  on  things  divine  as  they  discuss 
human  affairs  ;  there  would  be  no  more  heresy-mongers,  to 
scent  prayer-meetings  and  new  sects  in  the  harmless  and 
free  interchange  of  thought  among  sensible  men — and  the 
whole  course  of  our  life  would  be  bathed  in  the  sunlight  of  a 
higher  world  ! " 

The  last  sentence  has  fortunately  no  such  meaning 
here,  as  that  which  it  had  to  its  author  and  his  readers  ; 
it  came  from  the  depths  of  a  noble  soul,  stung  and 
wounded,  persecuted  and  hunted  down  by  just  such 
heresy-mongers. 

In  the  following  year  (1805)  the  school- work,  so 
pleasant  and  congenial,  had  to  undergo  certain  modi- 
fications necessitated  by  new  duties,  enchaining  many 
advantages  and  grave  responsibiHties.  It  came  about  as 
follows.  Count  Dohna-Schlodien  had  two  sons  whom 
he  wished  to  place  under  proper  supervision  at  the 
university.  There  were  difficulties  to  find  a  suitable 
tutor,  and  young  Ebel,  a  little  more  than  twenty,  was  so 
strongly  recommended  to  the  Count  that  he  put  them 
under  his  care.  As  his  new  duties  required  him  to 
accompany  the  young  counts  to  the  university  and  hear 
the  lectures  they  attended,  it  was  of  course  impossible 
for  him  to  continue  his  work  at  the  Altstadt-School, 
and  he  prepared  the  way  for  separation  by  restricting 


EARLY   MINISTRY.  33 

his  attendance  to  a  few  hours.  The  care  of  the  young 
counts'was  certainly  not  a  sinecure  ;  their  first  education 
had  been  at  a  school  conducted  by  the  Moravian  broth- 
ers at  Uist.  Their  peculiar  system  of  narrow,  straight- 
laced  and  rigorous  religious  formalism  was  not  calculated 
to  benefit  youth,  who  were  kept  in  strict  exclusiveness, 
and  taught  that  worldly  pleasure  of  every  kind  was 
wicked  ;  outwardly  they  had  all  to  be  saints,  but  in- 
wardly they  detested  saintHness  and  longed  for  freedom, 
and  for  that  self-same  world  they  were  supposed  to  have 
abjured.  The  elder  brother,  in  particular,  confounding 
the  peculiar  notions  of  the  Uist  brotherhood  with  Chris- 
tianity, formed  a  positive  aversion  to  it  and  all  religion. 
From  the  strict  exclusiveness  of  Uist  their  father  re- 
moved them  to  Dresden,  where  they  studied  in  private, 
and  enjoyed  almost  unbounded  license.  The  transition 
from  one  extreme  to  another  was  a  great  mistake,  and 
led  to  consequences  which  rendered  a  middle  course 
matter  of  absolute  necessity.  For  that  the  expedient 
was  adopted  of  placing  the  young  men  under  Ebel's 
care  ;  a  momentous  and  difficult  position  under  all  cir- 
cumstances, but  peculiarly  so,  when  respect  is  had  to 
the  circumstance  that  Ebel  was  only  by  one  year  the 
senior  of  the  elder,  and  by  two  of  the  younger  of  the 
brothers.  But  a  better  and  more  judicious  choice  could 
hardly  have  been  made  ;  for  it  has  already  been  shown 
that  Ebel  was  through  and  through  unostentatiously 
devout,  firm,  judicious,  and  affectionate.  His  plan  was 
to  treat  them  as  equals,  and  to  appeal  to  their  best  in- 
stincts rather  by  the  force  of  example  than  by  magis- 
terial precepts,  which  the  peculiar  sensitiveness  of  his 
pupils  would  have  resented.  He  consulted  them  as  to 
the  most  advantageous  use  of  their  time  ;  they  agreed 


34  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

upon  the  adoption  of  a  scheme  of  work,  readily  fell  in 
with  their  tutor's  suggestion  to  read  the  classics,- and  as 
he  set  them  the  example  of  regularity  and  understood  to 
win  their  confidence,  esteem  and  affection,  the  method 
was  crowned  with  success.  There  still  remained  the 
question  of  companionship,  not  so  easily  regulated  at  a 
university  ;  of  nearly  the  same  age  and  attending  the 
same  lectures,  their  companions  were  his,  and  as  he 
established  friendly  relations  with  them,  the  whole  bent 
and  direction  of  their  social  life  ran  in  proper  channels. 
Young  men  of  about  twenty  years  of  age  feel  tutelage  of 
any  sort  irksome  ;  it  was  the  tutor's  part  to  keep  a 
watchful  eye  over  their  movements,  and  as  anything  like 
espionage  was,  of  course,  utterly  out  of  the  question, 
Ebel  put  them  on  their  honor,  and  tried  to  get  their 
confidence  by  giving  them  his.  He  would  tell  them 
w^here  he  went,  when  he  had  occasion  to  leave  the  house, 
that  they  might  know  where  to  find  him  ;  and  that,  of 
course,  prompted  similar  frankness  on  their  part,  more 
in  the  case  of  the  younger,  however,  than  in  that  of  the 
elder.*  As  to  him  it  may  be  here  stated,  that  he  told 
Ebel  on  leaving  the  university,  that  before  his  acquaint- 
ance with  him  he  had  regarded  all  persons  professing 
religious  principles  as  hypocrites,  but  that  he  was  the 
first  to  convince  him  of  the  error  of  his  hasty  judg- 
ment. 

*  The  younger  fell  in  the  war  of  1813  ;  he  was  one  of  the  three, 
whose  death  is  commemorated  in  Max  von  Schenkendorf's  poem 
"  The  three  Counts."  His  father,  in  a  letter  to  Ebel,  on  that  sor- 
rowful providence,  touchingly  narrates  how  the  young  hero  during 
the  armistice  made  his  servant  read  the  Bible,  which  he  tried  to  the 
best  of  his  ability  to  explain  and  commend  to  him.  The  tutor's 
teaching  had  not  been  forgotten. 


EARLY   MINISTRY.  35 

This  tutorship  brought  many  advantages  to  the  young 
candidate ;  its  emoluments  rid  him  of  care  and  enabled 
him  to  buy  books  ;  the  frequenting  of  lectures  on  branches 
of  science  with  which  he  had  not  any  previous  or  only 
imperfect  acquaintance,  e.  g.  Political  Economy,  Physics, 
and  especially  Metaphysics,  expanded  his  culture  and 
brought  him  in  contact  with  the  most  distinguished  pro- 
fessors. Peculiarly  beneficial  were  the  philosophical 
prelections  of  Krug  (the  successor  of  Kant)  ;  and  his 
excellent  advice  subjecting  all  philosophical  or  similar 
systems  to  unprejudiced  and  calm  examination  he  sought 
to  follow  throughout  Hfe.*  It  was  at  the  instance  of 
Krug  that  the  university  of  Leipzig  conferred  on  Ebel 
the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Philosophy,  in  18 10. 

Moreover,  the  excellent  connections  of  the  young 
counts  gave  him  the  entree  into  the  best  society  at 
Konigsberg ;  and  his  affability,  gentleness  and  modesty, 
his  conversational  facility,  and  aptness  to  learn  and 
readiness  of  adaptation  stood  him  in  good  stead  ;  famili- 
arity with  the  forms  of  polite  intercourse  added  a  new 
element  to  his  many-sidedness,  and  frequent  participation 
in  festive  gatherings  and  amusements,  as  well  as  occa- 
sional visits  to  the  theatre  taught  him  to  form  a  proper 
estimate  of  the  advantages  and  disadvantages  of  social 
life.  Thoroughly  at  his  ease  and  at  home  in  society,  he 
early  learned  to  prefer  the  intercourse  of  a  few  chosen 
and  congenial  companions  to  that  of  the  great  multitude. 

There  was  at  Konigsberg  at  that  time  an  sesthetical 
club,  a  rather  heterogeneous  sort  of  a  body,  composed  of 
persons  representing  the  utmost  variety  of  vocations,  but 
occupying  common  ground  in  the  then  comparatively 

*  His  own  statement  in  the  History  of  Frederic  College. 


36  FAITH  VICTORIOUS. 

new  field  of  Esthetics.  Among  them  were  students, 
poets,  and  even  actors.  Max  von  Schenkendorf  belonged 
to  it,  and  so  did  Ebel.  His  influence  was  excellent,  and 
the  relation  a  pleasing  one.  Of  this  there  is  written  testi- 
mony, showing  likewise  his  peculiar  aptitude  to  turn  the 
aspirations  of  others  to  high  and  holy  ends.  One  wrote 
thus  :  "  I  live  in  you  with  all  my  soul.  You  are  so  truly 
devout  and  childlike.  Would  I  could  be  like  you  !  I  am 
struggling  and  striving  without  avail.  But  in  thought  I  am 
with  you,  and  it  is  my  holiest  endeavor  to  follow  the 
Good  and  live  in  God. — I  stood  in  need  of  your  manly 
gentleness,  for  though  all  are  manly,  they  are  not  gentle, 
except  G.,  who  is  gentle  but  not  manly."  Another  with 
whom  he  corresponded  wrote  :  "  I  have  fought  in  these 
days  many  a  hard  battle.  My  senses,  ever  prompting  me 
to  earthly  pleasures,  give  me  much  trouble.  I  read  the 
Bible,  and  acquire  strength.  And  to  whom  am  I  indebt- 
ed for  all  this  ?  To  you,  the  man  with  a  pure  heart ;  you 
spoke  out  of  its  fulness  and  filled  mine.  Accept  my 
sincere  and  unfeigned  thanks.  The  few  hours  spent 
with  you  have  borne  fruit  a  thousand-fold.  But  enough, 
you  know  what  I  mean." 

Among  his  acquaintance  at  that  time  we  must  not  for- 
get the  name  of  Borowski,  an  excellent  clergyman,  whose 
sermons  he  loved  tc^hear.  He  invited  him  to  fill  his 
pulpit,  and  advised  him  to  commit  his  sermons  after 
writing  them,  for  in  Germany  the  use  of  manuscript  in 
the  pulpit  is  almost  unknown.  Ebel  had  no  aptitude 
that  way  ;  his  plan  was  to  make  thorough  preparation,  to 
master  his  subject,  feel  it  through  and  through,  and  de- 
pend for  expression  on  the  inspiration  of  the  moment. 
The  vivacity  of  his  mind  and  his  fresh  creative  faculty 
forbade  slavish  committal.     Borowski,  who  heard  his  first 


EARLY   MINISTRY.  3/ 

sermon,  and  thought  he  had  committed  it,  complimented 
him  on  its  deUvery.  To  that  practice  he  uniformly  ad- 
hered, and  his  older  friend  felt  perfectly  satisfied  with 
the  result  during  the  two  years  that  he  heard  the  candi- 
date. Their  intercourse  was  pleasant,  edifying,  and  in- 
structive. Borowski  was  a  well-informed  theologian  and 
had  an  excellent  library  ;  both  his  information  and  lit- 
erary possessions  were  available  to  Ebel.  Schonherr's 
views  were  known  to  him,  for  he  belonged  to  his  congre- 
gation, and,  like  other  tendencies  in  philosophy  and 
theology,  formed  part  of  their  conversation.  He  loved 
Ebel  as  if  he  had  been  his  own  son,  and  honored  him  in 
various  ways  ;  e.  g.^  he  assigned  to  him  the  morning  ser- 
mon and  chose  the  afternoon  for  himself,  although  the 
morning  congregation  was  much  the  larger  and  attended 
by  the  communicants,  and  gave  him  t:arfe  bla7iche  in  the 
selection  of  preachers  among  the  candidates.  "  I  leave 
it  all  to  you,"  he  wrote  on  one  occasion,  ''for  I  know 
you  to  be  cautious,  and  how  studiously  you  care  both  for 
the  congregation  and  myself.  You  may  be  sure  that  I 
shall  always  gratefully  acknowledge  the  blessed  conduct 
of  your  work,  and  that  my  warmest  prayers  will  follow 
you  when  you  go  to  pasture  your  own  flock."  And 
after  he  left  Konigsberg,  Borowski  wrote  :  "  You  have 
not  only  been  my  friend,  but  the  kind  provider  of  my 
pulpit  and  congregation.  Where  shall  I  find  another 
Ebel,  one  that  knows  all  the  candidates,  speaks  kindly  of 
them,  and  enables  me  to  choose  a  proper  substitute  ?" 
He  calls  him  his  dear  son,  brother,  and  friend. 

Towards  the  close  of  1806,  Count  Dohna,  the  father 
of  his  pupils,  offered  Ebel  the  vacant  position  of  pastor 
at  Hermsdorf,  on  his  estates  ;  he  thought  himself  alto- 
gether too  young  to  accept  so  honorable  and  responsible 


38  FAITH   VICTORIOUSo 

a  position,  and  declined  it  on  the  ground  of  his  youth.  But 
the  Count  insisted,  and  urged  him  to  visit  the  church  and 
conduct  a  service,  representing  that  the  effect  of  his  ser- 
mon might  perhaps  contain  a  divine  intimation  as  to  what 
was  his  duty  in  the  matter.  So  he  went  and  did  as  he 
had  been  bidden,  with  the  result  that  the  congregation 
begged  the  Count  to  send  them  no  other  preachers,  but 
to  appoint  Ebel.  Under  this  pressure  he  felt  bound  to 
cease  all  opposition  in  the  matter.  He  deemed  it  passing 
strange,  when  he  saw  the  church  and  the  country  for  the 
first  time,  that  all  appeared  singularly  familiar  to  him,  and 
he  recollected  to  have  seen  in  a  dream,  a  year  before,  the 
very  church  to  which  he  was  called.  So  the  Count  sent 
him  his  call  in  these  words :  ''  Here,  my  dearest  Ebel,  is 
the  vocation  which  God,  the  Lord  and  Father  of  us  all, 
sends  you  by  my  humble  hand." 

When  he  left  Konigsberg,  so  dear  to  him,  he  was  hon- 
ored with  a  letter  from  the  Magistrate,  dated  Decem- 
ber 2,  1806,  in  which  his  past  services  are  gratefully 
and  highly  commended,  accompanied  by  the  assurance 
of  sincere  interest  in  his  advantageous  preferment. 

Before  entering  on  the  active  work  of  the  sacred  min- 
istry his  conscience  prompted  him  to  take  a  step  which 
gave  him  ever  afterwards  the  profoundest  satisfaction, 
and  placed  him  superior  to  any  possible  imputation  of  his 
honor.  When  he  presented  himself  before  the  Consistory 
to  take  the  prescribed  oath  on  the  Augsburg  Confession, 
he  asked  the  Council  to  tell  him  the  sense  in  which  the 
oath  was  to  be  construed  ?  Did  the  Consistory  make  the 
symbolical  books  or  the  word  of  God  the  final  arbiter  ? 
With  one  exception,  it  was  the  unhesitating  decision  of 
the  Council  that  quatenus  not  quid  was  self-evident. 
What  Ebel  had  in  his  mind  was  the  doctrine  of  the  king- 


EARLY   MINISTRY.  39 

dom  of  God  upon  earth,  which  the  Reformers  had  con- 
founded with  the  errors  of  the  Jews  on  that  subject,  and 
accordingly  rejected  in  Article  XVII.  of  the  Augsburg 
Confession  ;  a  doctrine  regarded  by  many  of  the  older 
and  modern  theologians  (among  the  latter,  e.  g.,  Spener 
and  Bengel)  as  founded  on  Holy  Scripture.  Ebel  wanted 
to  know  whether  the  Consistory  accorded  to  him  the  lib- 
erty of  regarding  the  authority  of  the  Bible  superior  to 
that  of  a  symbolical  book,  so  that  his  conscience  might 
not  be  bound  by  something  he  did  not  agree  with. 

The  ordination  of  Ebel  took  place,  November  23,  1806, 
in  the  Castle  Church,  at'  Konigsberg,  in  the  presence  of 
the  Prussian  princes  ;  the  Rev.  Dr.  Hennig  officiated  on 
the  occasion,  and  preached  a  sermon  on  Matt.  xxiv.  35  : 
"  Heaven  and  earth  shall  pass  away,  but  my  words  shall 
not  pass  away." 

His  induction  or  institution  had  to  be  postponed  until 
the  following  summer,  and  took  place  in  the  midst  of  the 
noisy  clamor  created  by  inimical  troops  on  their  return 
from  Friedland. 

Although  his  friends  and  relations  advised  delay,  Ebel 
deemed  it  his  duty  to  set  out,  January  7,  1807,  for  his 
parish,  situated  in  a  section  of  the  country  on  the  Pas- 
sarge,  which  was  at  the  time  exposed  to  an  invasion  of  the 
French,  who  had  devastated  the  village,  and  actually 
pillaged  the  parsonage  before  he  crossed  the  threshold. 
His  furniture,  which  for  the  most  part  had  been  obtained 
on  credit,  was  carried  away,  and  the  most  precious  of  his 
possessions,  his  library,  still  on  the  road,  was  lost  in  the 
sack  of  Braunsberg.  Those  books,  acquired  under  great 
difficulties,  and  often  at  the  expense  of  other  necessaries, 
were  unspeakably  dear  to  him,  and  their  loss  caused  him 
much  pain  :  still  he  felt  that  it  was  a  providential  di- 


40  FAITH  VICTORIOUS. 

rection  designed  to  warn  him  against  the  danger  of  buy- 
ing too  many  books,  to  which  thirst  of  knowledge  was 
tempting  him.  But  God  had  provided  for  him  in  some 
other  way  :  in  a  wing  of  the  castle,  where  he  took  up  his 
abode,  he  found  a  well  stocked  library  of  choice  works, 
which  had  been  the  property  of  the  late  Pastor  Trescho, 
the  teacher  of  Herder,  and  come  into  the  possession  of 
the  Count.  To  that  he  had  free  access,  and  in  it  he 
found  a  large  collection  of  very  valuable  works,  espe- 
cially many  on  old  theology,  and  rare  standard  authors. 
As  his  parsonage  at  Hermsdorf  was  unfit  for  occupation, 
he  had  at  Count  Dohna's  instance  taken  quarters  at 
Schlodien,  from  where  he  served  not  only  his  own  parish, 
but  two  others  besides,  the  pastor  in  the  one  being  laid 
up  with  sickness,  and  that  of  the  other  having  fled.  Con- 
cerning this  interesting  period  of  Ebel's  ministry,  the  ma- 
terial is  rather  scant  in  the  shape  of  notices  furnished  by 
himself.  What  he  said  on  the  subject  is  exceedingly 
fragmentary.  In  one  place  he  briefly  states  that  though 
the  war  played  havoc  with  his  temporal  affairs,  it  yielded 
him  many  a  useful  experience  for  life.  That  he  could 
have  written  highly  interesting  reminiscences  was  well 
known  to  those  of  his  acquaintance,  with  whom  he  oc- 
casionally conversed  on  the  matter.  But  his  own  short- 
comings in  that  respect  have  been  supplied  by  others. 

The  French  were  scattered  throughout  that  section  of 
country  in  large  numbers  ;  the  Prussians  and  Russians 
were  close  by  ;  and  sanguinary  conflicts  were  of  constant 
occurrence.  A  friend  of  Ebel,  Baron  Ernst  von  Hey- 
king,  who  for  the  purpose  of  writing  his  biography,  col- 
lected and  carefully  drew  up  notices  and  letters,  which 
have  been  kindly  forwarded  to  me  by  Miss  Adalberta 
Ebel,  the  surviving  daughter  of  the  subject  of  this  book, 


EARLY   MINISTRY.  4I 

narrated  that  he  told  him  how  strangely  he  felt  when  he 
saw  for  the  first  time  a  body  of  French,  drawn  up  with 
loaded  muskets  in  front  of  the  Castle  of  Schlodien.  They 
were  chasseurs  whose  sudden  appearance  filled  Count 
Dohna,  his  family,  and  the  whole  population  with  terror. 
Besides  the  Baron,  Ebel  was  the  only  person  sufficiently 
versed  in  French  to  open  negotiations  with  the  enemy. 
His  first  duty  was  to  provide  for  their  entertainment,  which 
was  very  liberal,  but  the  haughty  soldiery  deUberately 
dashed  the  filled  bottles  of  wine  to  the  ground  as  an  ex- 
pressive intimation  that  they  were  the  victors,  and  might 
act  as  they  pleased.  The  camp  of  the  army  of  occupa- 
tion was  only  a  few  miles  distant  ;  and  the  Count  sent 
there  to  procure  a  safe-guard,  whose  presence  it  was 
thought  would  prevent  acts  of  violence,  and  inspired  all 
Schlodien  with  confidence.  An  event,  however,  which 
happened  shortly  after  their  arrival,  showed  how  very 
fallacious  was  that  imagined  safety.  One  day  there  ar- 
rived suddenly  a  Prussian  officer  at  the  head  of  a  small 
detachment  of  Prussian  soldiers,  with  five  Cossacks 
(Russians).  They  rushed  into  the  castle,  passed  like  a 
whirlwind  through  every  room,  until  they  found  the 
Count,  whom  the  officer  accused  of  sympathy  with  the 
French,  and  of  concealing  French  soldiers.  Ebel  inter- 
posed and  succeeded  in  bringing  the  infuriated  soldiers 
to  reason,  and  preventing  personal  injury  to  the  Count. 
Meanwhile  the  safe-guard,  attempting  to  escape  through 
the  windows  of  the  castle,  were  caught  by  the  Cossacks, 
and  carried  away  as  prisoners.  The  Prussians  likewise 
seized  two  French  horses  as  spoils  of  war.  Nobody 
doubted  that  the  French  would  retaliate,  take  the  Count 
prisoner,  and  set  fire  to  Schlodien.  In  this  difficult  and 
perilous  situation,   Ebel  advised   the  Count   to   escape 


42  FAITH  VICTORIOUS. 

with  his  family,  and  offered  to  remain  for  the  protection 
of  the  property  and  the  safety  of  the  people.  The  offer 
was  gratefully  accepted. 

Meanwhile  the  Prussian  officer  had  been  wounded  in 
an  engagement  and  made  prisoner  awaiting  transporta- 
tion to  France,  and  the  immediate  consequence  of  the 
Prussian  surprise  of  the  French  safe-guard  was  the  arrival 
from  the  camp  of  a  captain  with  a  squadron  of  horse, 
roughly  inquiring  for  the  Count.  Ebel  told  him  exactly 
everything  as  it  had  occurred,  and  that  the  Count, 
deeming  the  safety  of  himself  and  his  family  imperiled 
after  the  safe-guard  had  been  taken  prisoners,  had  left  for 
a  more  distant  place  of  safety.  In  that  way  he  corrected 
the  misapprehension  of  the  French  as  to  a  preconcerted 
collusion,  and  proved  to  them  that  there  had  been  no  in- 
tentional injury  or  offence  on  the  part  of  the  Count.  He 
likewise  tried  to  pacify  the  captain  by  offering  him  four 
picked,  fine  horses  from  the  Count's  stables  as  an  indem- 
nity for  the  two  missing  ones.  While  this  negotiation 
was  going  on  within,  the  soldiers  without  began  to  ex- 
hibit tokens  of  displeasure  that  they  were  not  allowed  to 
plunder,  and  that  their  captain  was  incessantly  talking 
with  the  petit  abM,  as  they  called  Ebel.  The  latter,  aware 
that  the  Prussians  were  drawing  near,  tried  everything  in 
his  power  to  protract  the  negotiation  as  much  as  possible, 
and  finally  succeeded  in  reaching  an  understanding  with 
the  captain,  who  was  also  aware  of  the  approach  of  the 
Prussians,  to  this  effect,  that  in  the  absence  of  Count 
Dohna  he  would  consent,  as  his  representative,  to  accom- 
pany him  to  camp,  for  the  captain's  instructions  w^ere  to 
produce  the  Count  at  headquarters  before  the  general  in 
command.  So  he  prepared  to  visit  the  hostile  camp  as 
hostage,  after  taking  the  precaution  of  ordering  a  goodly 


EARLY   MINISTRY.  43 

assortment  of  choice  wines  and  groceries  to  be  stowed 
away  in  his  sleigh,  in  which  he  left  with  an  escort  of  six 
French  soldiers.  The  present  had  a  mollifying  influence 
on  the  general  (who  had  a  weakness  for  mulled  wine  and 
was  rejoiced  to  get  his  favorite  beverage  in  so  unexpected 
a  manner),  and  Ebel,  who  presented  the  whole  affair 
frankly  and  without  fear,  succeeded  in  averting  the 
threatened  revenge  from  the  Count's  possessions.  Just 
as  he  was  leaving  the  camp,  a  French  lieutenant,  who 
had  been  very  pleasant  when  he  saw  him  before  at  the 
castle,  thrust  a  paper  into  his  hand.  He  took  it  without 
reading  it  at  the  time,  but  discovered  on  the  road  that  it 
was  a  passport.  He  had  hardly  read  it  when  he  heard, 
in  shrill  accents,  the  words,  Qid  vii  ?  uttered  by  a  French 
sentry,  and  realized  the  danger  from  which  God,  through 
the  instrumentality  of  that  lieutenant,  had  delivered  him. 
He  met  quite  a  number  of  such  sentries,  who  invariably 
required  the  production  of  the  passport  before  they 
allowed  him  to  proceed.  At  last  he  reached  Schlodien 
safe  and  sound,  and  hastened  to  the  neighboring  village, 
whither  the  Count  and  the  Countess  had  fled,  to  be  wel- 
comed by  them  with  tears  of  joy. 

His  visit  as  hostage  to  the  French  camp  is  only  a  sam- 
ple of  the  great  difficulties  of  his  position  during  the 
passage  of  the  French  to  and  from  Prussian  Eylau  and 
their  winter  quarters,  and  his  voluntary  exposure  to  so 
much  danger  for  Count  Dohna  was,  of  course,  prompted 
solely  by  sincere  affection.  Whoever  came  to  Schlodien, 
friend  or  foe,  transacted  their  business  with  him  ;  his 
youth  notwithstanding,  everybody  sought  him  for  coun- 
sel in  unexpected  and  difficult  emergencies,  and  he 
proved  equal  to  every  occasion.  Understanding  to  touch 
the  enemy  on  the  point  of  honor,  and  using  his  influence 


44  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

with  the  embittered  population  to  prevent  haste  in  word 
or  deed,  he  frequently  averted  plunder  and  mutiny  from 
Schlodien  and  the  neighborhood,  delivered  the  poor  from 
the  hands  of  marauders,  helped  them,  often  with  peril  to 
himself,  to  recover  what  had  been  stolen  from  them, 
when  he  saw,  for  instance,  how  some,  whom  the  French 
had  deprived  of  their  last  cow,  on  which  they  depended 
for  life,  would  rush  on  their  bayonets  to  repossess  them- 
selves of  their  property. 

He  himself  was  on  one  occasion  in  imminent  peril.  A 
French  marauder  came  one  day  with  all  sorts  of  unrea- 
sonable demands,  which  could  not  be  granted,  and  were 
in  part  refused  by  the  safe-guard  stationed  at  Schlodien. 
Infuriated  at  the  refusal  and  meditating  revenge,  the 
marauder  insisted  that  Ebel  should  go  with  him  to  the 
Colonel.  Without  suspecting  any  evil  design,  he  agreed 
to  the  proposal,  and  was  on  the  point  of  leaving,  when 
the  safe-guard  coming  along  and  understanding  the  dan- 
ger, peremptorily  ordered  the  marauder  to  take  his  in- 
stant departure  on  pain  of  being  shot.  That  made  him 
go,  and  Ebel  learned  from  the  safe-guard,  that  had  he 
accompanied  the  marauder  he  would  without  fail  have 
murdered  him. 

Through  his  instrumentality,  access  to  the  castle  and 
and  its  dependent  buildings  was  rendered  difficult  if  not 
impossible,  to  the  stragglers  of  the  army,  noted  alike  for 
cupidity  and  destructiveness.  He  caused  the  first  house 
in  the  village  to  be  fitted  up  as  a  sort  of  free  inn,  where 
refreshments,  solid  and  liquid,  were  always  kept  ready 
for  any  that  might  call,  and  as  the  village  lies  on  one 
side  of  the  stream  and  the  castle  on  the  other,  the 
hospitable  cheer  of  the  traveller's  home  was  so  judi- 
ciously administered  that  the  stragglers  continued  their 


EARLY   MINISTRY.  45 

journey  without  crossing  the  bridge,  to  their  own  satis- 
faction and  to  the  unspeakable  reUef  of  the  sorely  tried 
inhabitants  of  the  Castle.  The  winter  quarters  likewise 
led  to  many  difficult  complications,  which  Ebel  would 
often  straighten,  and  his  influence  with  the  enemy  was  so 
great  that  he  actually  induced  a  general  to  restore  to  an- 
other Count  Dohna  the  family  plate,  which  during  the 
winter  quarters,  having  been  discovered  by  the  enemy  in 
a  place  of  safe  keeping  within  a  solid  wall,  had  been 
taken. 

How  the  Dohnas  would  ever  have  fared  without  the 
good  pastor,  so  energetic,  judicious,  kind  and  self-sacri- 
ficing, we  cannot  conjecture  ;  that  the  castle  would  have 
been  sacked  and  burned,  and  they  reduced  to  beggary 
cannot  be  doubted  by  any  one  familiar  with  the  inci- 
dents of  the  war  of  Napoleon  in  Germany.  Ebel  proved 
a  veritable  Joseph  to  them  and  that  whole  countryside. 
When  Count  Dohna  transmitted  to  Ebel  his  call,  he 
wrote  : 

"  Look  at  your  vocation,  dear  Christian  brother.  You  are 
invited  to  be  a  preacher  of  peace  in  the  fires  of  war  and  the 
furnace  of  tribulation,  whose  lurid  flames  already  shed  their 
light  on  our  path,  and  to  stay  at  your  post.  This  requires 
steadfastness,  and  perhaps  more  resolution  than  to  fly  to 
arms  in  defence  of  our  native  land  ;  therefore  put  on  the 
whole  armor  of  God,  etc." 

And  after  he  had  left  Hermsdorf  for  another  sphere 
of  labor  he  gratefully  said  : 

"We  shall  never  forget  you  and  1807,  no  more  than  we 
can  forget  to  thank  God  for  all  His  undeserved  blessings 
when  He  deems  it  meet  to  deprive  us  of  some  great  happi- 


46  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

ness."  ....  "I  can  never,  my  ever  grateful  heart  can 
never  forget,  what  a  blessing  you  were  to  our  family  and 
people  and  countryside ;  we  have  indeed  great  cause  to  re- 
member that  blessing  before  God,  even  as  the  godly  Nehe- 
miah,  in  a  right  filial  spirit,  did  it  for  himself  :  '  Think  upon 
me,  my  God,  for  good,  according  to  all  that  I  have  done  for 
this  people.'     (Neh.  v.  19).     But  enough  of  this  in  words." 

On  the  occasion  of  a  vacancy  on  the  estates  of  Count 
Dohna,  writing  to  Ebel  for  the  purpose  of  recommend- 
ing a  fit  person,  the  good  Count  used  this  language  : 

"We  turn  to  you,  reverend  friend,  for  a  helper  in  war 
that  may  resemble  you  as  much  as  possible.  I  know  that  it 
will  be  hard  to  find  such  an  one,  unless  God  directs  us  in  our 
choice,  .  .  .  and  my  reason  for  addressing  you  in  this 
matter  is  simply  this  :  since  God  did  grant  us  this  blessing 
before  we  had  asked  Him  for  it,  we  trust  that  He  will  do  it 
again  now  that  we  ask  Him,  and  especially  through  your 
good  offices,  .  .  .  and  these  our  parishes  could  hail  no 
messenger  with  greater  joy  than  one  recommended  and  sent 
by  their  dear  Mr.  Ebelchen" 

The  italicized  word  is  an  untranslatable  diminutive  of 
endearment,  used  by  the  parishioners  in  token  of  affec- 
tion for  their  good  pastor,  who  during  the  war  was  wont 
to  go  in  and  out  among  them  as  a  brother  and  friend 
without  the  restraints  of  official  intercourse. 

In  the  midst  of  the  confusion  and  turmoil  of  war,  Ebel, 
having  lost  his  own  team,  was  obliged  to  serve  three 
parishes,  for  nearly  a  year  on  foot ;  a  hard  and  laborious 
work,  when  it  is  remembered  that  the  distances  were  very 
considerable.  At  last  he  succeeded  in  buying  a  captured 
war-horse,  which  carried  him  daily  on  his  round  of  offi- 
cial duty.     He  would  often  dispense  with  the  official 


EARLY   MINISTRY.  47 

garments  when  he  gathered  the  people  in  some  barn  for 
service,  because  the  church  edifice  happened  to  be  filled 
with  the  enemy's  material  of  war.  There  he  would 
stand  in  their  midst  with  words  of  consolation  and  en- 
couragement, and  exhortations  to  fortitude,  patience  and 
submission.  Thus  the  relations  to  his  flock  were  cement- 
ed in  love  ;  and  the  love  that  went  out  from  him,  returned 
in  tender  and  touching  attachment.  Some  of  the  incidents 
of  that  period  clearly  show,  what  some  are  so  loth  to  admit, 
that  after  all  there  is  in  human  nature  an  undertone  of 
veneration  for  things  divine,  which  even  the  violence  and 
brutality  of  war  are  unable  to  quench.  Those  hordes  of 
Napoleon,  which  swept  with  the  besom  of  destruction 
over  Europe,  were  brought  up  under  influences,  terrible 
to  contemplate.  They  came  from  a  country  where 
Christianity  had  been  oflicially  abolished,  and  religion 
was  ridiculed  as  a  silly  superstition,  and  yet  their  hearts 
were  not  wholly  dead  to  the  influence  of  religion,  not 
wholly  without  respect  for  its  ordinances.  One  day  Ebel 
performed  a  baptism  in  a  church,  which  the  French  had 
converted  into  a  barrack  ;  they  were  drilling  at  the  time, 
and  when  in  the  course  of  the  service  he  came  to  the 
Lord's  Prayer,  the  rude  soldiery,  in  token  of  respect, 
presented  arms  while  it  was  being  offered.  He  had  often 
opportunity  to  converse  with  French  officers  on  serious 
themes,  and  he  was  amazed  to  find  some,  who,  in  spite 
of  their  dreadful  trade  and  horrid  education,  were 
thoughtful  and  devout,  waiting  for  the  kingdom  of 
God,  and  viewing  the  events  of  the  period  as  signs  and 
tokens  of  an  approaching  better  time,  and  preparing  the 
hearts  of  men  for  a  more  cheerful  and  willing  reception 
of  the  truths  of  salvation. 

Decades  later,  Ebel  Y»^ould  love  to  give  expression  to 


48  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

the  confident  and  joyous  expectation  of  meeting  some  of 
those  French  officers  before  the  throne  of  God. 

The  tempest  of  war  had  spent  its  fury  in  that  part  of 
Germany,  when  at  the  close  of  1807,  the  enemy  left  the 
neighborhood  of  Schlodien  and  the  Passarge.  The  ex- 
citing and  tumultuous  scenes  of  the  occupation  no  longer 
distracted  the  mind  and  interfered  with  the  work  of  the 
young  minister.  He  had  now  the  time,  as  he  always  had 
the  inclination,  to  attend  more  thoroughly  to  the  culture 
of  his  own  soul.  From  a  child  it  had  been  his  delight- 
ful occupation  to  hearken  to  what  God  might  reveal  to 
him  in  his  conscience,  and  to  hold  sw^eet  converse  with 
Him  in  prayer,  and  the  anxieties  and  trials  of  the  event- 
ful time  through  which  he  had  just  passed,  had  deep- 
ened and  intensified  his  piety  and  habitual  intercourse 
with  God,  and  recourse  to  Him  for  light,  and  direction. 
The  beautiful  old  hymn :  Jesus,  melne  Liebe,  lebet,  had 
yielded  him  sweet  comfort,  use  and  direction  under  the 
calamities  of  war  w^hen  he  was  exposed  to  bodily  danger  ; 
now  that  that  kind  of  danger  and  trial  belonged  happily 
to  the  past,  the  same  hymn  became  unspeakably  precious 
to  him  in  the  spiritual  comfort  it  gave,  and  the  blessed 
instruction  it  imparted.  It  is  certainly  a  most  beautitul 
hymn,  so  rich  and  weighty,  but  withal  so  full  of  felici- 
tous turns,  which  are  sure  to  be  spoiled  in  the  transla- 
tion, that  I  can  only  deplore  my  inability  to  give  it  in 
Enghsh  dress.  But  for  the  benefit  of  readers  familiar 
with  German,  a  place  has  been  made  for  the  original  in 
Appendix  C.  That  hymn  had  a  wonderful  hold  on  his 
heart  and  mind  ;  it  filled  them  day  and  night.  No  one 
may  tell,  because  no  one  can  know,  what  then  transpired 
in  the  secret  chambers  of  Ebel's  heart,  but  we  know  that 
it  was  a  momentous  crisis  in  the  history  of  his  spiritual 


EARLY    MINISTRY.  49 

life.  It  seems  to  have  been  that  turning  point  in  the 
spiritual  life  of  man,  which  for  want  of  a  better  term, 
may  be  called  the  antithesis  or  opposition  of  the  human 
and  the  divine.  Some  theologians  call  it  conversion, 
others  regeneration  ;  but  it  is  not  a  question  of  theology 
at  all,  it  is  purely  one  of  personal  feeling  and  experience  ; 
nor  is  it  necessary  to  urge  its  expression,  for  where  it 
does  exist,  it  is  sure  to  express  itself  in  the  practice  of 
Christian  virtues  and  graces,  in  unostentatious  holiness  ; 
it  is  a  state  of  the  soul  in  which  the  consciousness  of  un- 
worthiness  and  of  inability  to  conquer  innate  sinful  pro- 
pensities rise  against  the  high  ends  of  the  Christian  voca- 
tion ;  a  state  in  which  we  cry  out  for  help  and  light, 
write  bitter  things  against  ourselves,  and  struggle  for  a 
higher  plane  of  life,  in  which  God  is  everything  and  we 
are  nothing,  in  which  grace  accomplishes  what  native 
strength  is  unable  to  achieve,  in  which  we  fling  aside 
every  notion  of  self-righteousness,  and  feel  irresistibly 
impelled  by  the  Divine  Spirit  to  count  all  things  but  loss 
that  we  may  win  Christ,  and  learn  in  the  school  of  Christ 
to  advance  from  strength  to  strength,  to  the  triumphant 
faith  of  St.  Paul,  which  made  him  exclaim  :  ^'  I  can  do 
all  things  through  Christ  that  strengtheneth  us." 

Through  that  crisis  Ebel  appears  to  have  passed  im- 
mediately after  the  war,  and  he  came  out  of  the  great 
struggle  more  thoroughly  equipped  for  a  ministry  of  self- 
sacrifice,  devotion  and  personal  holiness,  more  enthusi- 
astically consecrated  to  the  service  of  God. 

Although  profoundly  convinced  of  the  reality  of  Di- 
vine grace  in  his  own  soul,  and  ineffably  happy  in  the 
consciousness  thereof,  Ebel  never  urged  or  insisted  that 
the  work  of  grace  must  manifest  itself  in  the  same  way 
in  others.  His  knowledge  of  human  nature,  his  knowl- 
3 


50  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

edge  of  the  wonderful  and  various  workings  of  the  mani- 
fold grace  of  God,  and  his  strong,  good  common  sense, 
prevented  him  from  falling  into  such  an  error.  For  error 
it  is,  and  a  mischievous  one,  to  induce  others  to  express 
that  which  possibly  they  do  not  feel  ;  or  to  describe  as 
an  operation  of  the  Divine  Spirit  what,  after  all,  happens 
frequently  to  be  only  a  transient  emotion,  not  a  perma- 
nent change  of  direction  and  disposition.  Ebel's  course, 
in  this  respect,  appears  to  have  been  singularly  judicious  ; 
he  trembled  to  demand  in  others  what  he  felt  he  had  no 
right  to  demand,  or  to  map  out  or  indicate  the  way  in 
which  grace  must  operate  ;  he  left  all  that  in  the  hands 
of  God,  who  in  His  several  dealings  with  men  could  re- 
new what  was  decayed,  when  and  where  it  might  seem  to 
Him  good.  Not  that  he  did  not  insist  upon  the  ne- 
cessity of  growth  in  grace,  but  that  he  felt  that  the  prog- 
ress to  perfection  must  be  mainly  the  work  of  God  in  the 
renovation  of  our  spiritual  nature,  and  a  corresponding, 
incessant,  and  faithful  responsibility  on  our  part.  That 
awakening  and  state  of  heart  our  Lord  and  His  apostles 
appear  to  designate  in  the  use  of  the  -woxdi  perfect  (cf.  St. 
Matt,  v.,  Phil,  iii..  Col.  i.),  and  as  to  the  passage  :  ''Be 
ye  therefore  perfect,  even  as  your  Father  which  is  in 
Heaven  is  perfect,"  he  admitted  it  in  its  full  and  pregnant 
sense  of  importing  continuous  growth  and  development, 
to  the  exclusion  of  everything  that  savoured  of  self-suf- 
ficiency. He  held  that  Scripture  teaches  what  the  older 
theologians,  e.  g.  Rieger,*  tersely  lay  down  : 

"  A  whole  Christian  cannot  always  remain  a  dwarf  or  a 
babe  J  he  must  grow  and  expand  into  maturity,  into  proper 
age,  measure,  and  stature  ;    from  being  a  disciple  he   must 

^Sefmons,  pp.  654,  657,  sq. 


EARLY    MINISTRY.  5  I 

become  perfect  as  his  Master  (St.  Luke,  vi.  40),  or  St.  Matt. 
V.  48,  has  it  still  more  explicitly  :  '  Be  ye  therefore  perfect,  even 
as  your  Father  which  is  in  heaven  is  perfect.'  Now  he  is 
perfect  who  has  all  the  requisite  qualifications  of  the  Christian 
character.  He  that  has  some  virtues,  but  not  all,  is  not  a 
true  Christian,  but  an  anomaly  and  a  cripple."  "What 
would  it  avail  if  some  one  thinks  that  his  innef  man,  his  heart 
and  soul,  belong  to  God,  but  that  his  body  in  its  senses  and 
members,  is  subject  to  sin  ?  Or,  reversing  the  case,  what  does 
it  avail  a  man  to  turn  his  outward  life,  his  eyes,  his  speech, 
and  his  works  in  the  direction  of  what  is  good,  while  his  mind 
is  alienated  from  God,  and  addicted  to  sinful  and  unholy 
pleasures  and  pursuits  ?  Perhaps  some  one  will  say,  How  is 
this  possible  ?  Who  could  be  a  Christian  in  such  a  case  ? 
Who  is  able  to  attain  a  degree  of  perfection  in  which  he  is 
deficient  in  nothing  ?  Perfection  belongs  to  life  eternal.  Well, 
I  answer,  that  no  one  is  justified  in  murmuring  against  the 
will  and  purpose  of  God,  which  only  contemplates  our  full 
restoration  from  the  fall.  Do  we  not  prefer  in  the  lower 
stage  of  physical  existence  a  whole  man  to  a  cripple  ?  But 
care  must  be  had  to  distinguish  between  things  that  differ. 
It  is  em.phatically  the  purpose  of  Gospel  teaching  to  conduct 
the  souls  of  men  to  the  proper  measure  of  perfect  manhood 
(Eph.  iv,  13,  in  the  Greek)  ;  and  St.  Paul  accordingly  not 
only  desired  his  hearers  to  attain  to  perfection,  not  only  ex- 
horted them  to  be  perfect,  but  he  strove  with  all  his  might  to 
conduct  them  to  perfection,  saying:  'Whom  we  preach, 
warning  every  man,  and  teaching  every  man  in  all  wisdom 
that  he  may  present  every  man  perfect  in  Christ.' "  (Col.  i. 
28,  29). 

That  is  Ebel's  view  of  perfection,  as  he  used  to  present 
it.  The  distinction  which  experience  taught  him  to  draw 
between  being  awakened  and  being  awake  began  to  take 
shape  in  his  mind  at  a  comparatively  early  date.  A  friend 
wrote  on  the  subject  as  follows  : 


52  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

"  Awakejted  2irt  those  who,  influenced  by  the  Holy  Ghost, 
do  not  resist  Him,  But  the  Spirit  of  God  is  shed  abroad 
everywhere,  and  is  operative  to  the  ends  of  the  world ;  it  is 
the  will  of  God,  moreover,  that  the  Saviour  should  be  pre- 
sented to  the  whole  world,  'that  whosoever  believeth  in  Him 
should  not  perish,  but  have  eternal  life.'  Such  being  the  ex- 
pressed will  of  God,  who  can  doubt  that  the  merciful  pro- 
visions of  the  New  Covenant  are  intended  to  apply  to  the 
whole  human  family  ?  And  as  every  member  of  that  family 
is  born  in  sin,  bound  in  the  sleep  and  death  of  sin,  does  it 
not  follow  that  each  and  all  are  able  to  be  roused  and  wak- 
ened from  that  sleep  and  death  ?  And  that  is  clearly  stated 
to  be  the  work  of  the  Holy  Spirit  (i  Cor.  xii.  6  sqq.).  As 
applied  to  the  kingdom  of  God,  it  is  necessary  to  remember 
that  it  is  to  be  established  and  built  up,  not  all  at  once,  but 
gradually,  by  men  that  suffer  themselves  to  be  influenced  by 
the  operations  of  that  Spirit  in  perfect  consciousness,  and,  as 
the  children  and  friends  of  God,  cheerfully  respond  by  ready 
acquiescence  in  the  gracious  purpose  of  God,  surrendering 
their  will  to  God's,  so  that  their  will  grows  up  with  and 
thoroughly  interblends  with  God's.  Where  that  condition 
prevails,  the  subjects  are  not  only  awakened,  but  awake; 
roused,  awakened  out  of  sleep  into  a  state  of  consciousness, 
they  are  convinced  of  the  necessity  to  persevere  in  vigilance 
and  prayer,  in  the  struggle  with  sin  and  the  exercise  of  love. 
They  are  «7£/ay^.?." 

It  is  clear  that  men  may  be  awakened  without  being 
awake  ;  they  may  be  roused  from  the  sleep  of  their 
natural  state,  but  not  to  full  consciousness,  and  so  turn 
round,  as  it  were,  to  the  other  side,  either  in  the  partial 
change  of  their  inclinations,  or  in  an  exchange  of  their 
old  resting-place  for  a  new  one  under  the  cross  of  Christ, 
burdening  Him  with  their  sins,  and  sleeping  sounder 
than  ever  before,  in  the  conceit  that  perfection  is  out 
of  the  question  here  and  belongs  to  the  other  world.    To 


EARLY   MINISTRY.  53 

correct  that  error  and  expose  its  fallacy,  Ebel  insisted 
upon  the  necessity  of  repentance,  not  only  on  the  part  of 
unconverted,  ungodly  men,  but  also  on  the  part  of  Chris- 
tians ;  he  urged  daily  repentance,  incessant  watchfulness, 
keeping  the  conscience  alive  through  self-examination 
and  self-condemnation,  holding  it  essential  to  the  main- 
tenance of  a  Christian  life  and  to  growth  in  grace  and 
virtue  that  we  must  judge  ourselves,  and  allow  ourselves 
to  be  judged  and  exhorted.  He  agreed  with  Rieger  (/.  c, 
p.  639),  that  ignorance,  and,  what  is  even  worse  than 
ignorance,  the  failure  and  omission  of  repentance,  are 
the  great  stumbling-block  in  the  way  of  growth  in  grace 
and  hoHness ;  that  Christians  must  daily  repent.  To 
rely  on  faith  alone  and  to  continue  in  the  practice  of 
evil,  or  in  the  disinclination  to  do  good,  he  deemed 
perilous  and  wicked  ;  good  works  he  described  as  goodly 
fruit  growing  on  the  good  tree  of  faith  naturally,  /.  ^., 
agreeably  to  the  nature  of  the  tree.  Faith  gives  us  a 
place  in  Christ,  and  through  faith  Christ  dwells  in  our 
heart.  Christians,  then,  conforming  to  the  example  and 
sharing  the  nature  of  Christ,  must  needs  forswear  and 
abandon  all  connection  with  a  wicked  world,  the  works 
of  darkness,  with  sin  and  its  progeny  of  wickedness. 

The  seeming  paradox  of  St.  Paul,  "  When  I  am  weak 
then  am  I  strong"  (2  Cor.  xii.  10),  has  been  a  great 
comfort  to  truly  devout  and  humble  Christians  ever  since 
he  penned  it.  Its  profound  and  cheering  truth  certainly 
did  not  escape  Ebel,  who  ever  drew  comfort  from  the 
thought  that  the  consciousness  and  conviction  of  per- 
sonal sinfulness  is  an  indispensable  concomitant  of  true 
faith,  and  the  secret  spring  of  strength  derived  from 
God.  God,  by  His  Spirit,  convinces  us  of  our  sinful- 
ness and  nothingness  without  Him  ;  he  lays  us  low,  not 


54  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

to  crush,  but  to  exalt  us  to  the  highest  dignity,  that  He 
may  be  all  in  all ;  and  that  conviction  genders  joy,  that 
rejoicing  in  the  Lord  of  which  the  same  Apostle  testifies 
in  another  place,  and  that  joy  in  the  Lord  is  distinctive 
of  Ebel.* 

As  this  very  important  subject  has  been  admirably 
delineated  by  him  in  works  not  readily  accessible  to  the 
general  reader,  this  seems  to  be  the  proper  place  for  the 
reproduction  of  several  passages.  In  the  first,  f  refer- 
ence is  made  to  the  mind  of  a  Christian  in  its  relation  to 
God,  as  distinguished  from  the  natural,  unrenewed  mind 
of  one  still  estranged  from  Him  ;  the  spiritual  frame  of 
mind  in  which  the  divine  holds  the  human  in  subjection, 
and  the  language  runs  thus  : 

"  In  this  frame  of  mind  man  is  wont  to  grow  oblivious  of 
whatever  relates  to  himself,  and  to  abandon  himself  with  all 
his  corruption  and  misery  to  a  merciful  God,  who,  as  it  were, 
receives  him  in  His  gracious  arms,  expecting  help  and  salva- 
tion from  Him  and  Him  alone,  accepting  all  as  the  gift  of 
His  Love  and  Grace,  and,  as  he  is  being  changed  into  the 
image  of  Christ,  ascribing  the  honor  and  praise  to  God  alone. 
But  be  it  remembered,  that  this  involves  that  man  (z.  e.  the 
strictly  human  in  us)  die  with  Christ,  and  rise  with  Him 
from  the  dead,  that  he  is  planted  with  Him  in  the  likeness  of 
His  death,  to  be  so  in  the  likeness  of  His  resurrection." 

No  one  that  reads  thoughtfully  the  words  of  St.  Paul, 
and  follows  the  chain  of  his  reasoning  in  that  wonderful 

"  For  an  expansion  of  the  thought  reference  is  made  to  his  vol- 
ume of  sermons  called  Die  Weisheit  von  Oben  (Wisdom  from  Above), 
2d  ed.,  Basel  and  Ludwigsburg,  iS68,  from  which  a  sermon  on  the 
subject  is  given  in  Appendix  A. 

f  Verstand  zmd  Vernunft,  2d  part,  pp.  153,  159. 


EARLY   MINISTRY.  55 

Epistle  to  the  Romans,  can  resist  the  conviction  that  the 
words  "  It  is  Christ  that  died,  yea  rather,  that  is  risen 
again,  who  is  even  at  the  right  hand  of  God,  who  also 
maketh  intercession  for  us  "  (viii.  34)  are  the  signal  of 
Christian  triumph  and  exultation.  And  no  one  can  be 
said  to  have  realized  his  status  as  a  Christian,  who  can 
not  from  the  depths  of  his  own  consciousness  blend  his 
voice  with  St.  Paul's  :  ''  Nay  in  all  these  things  we  are 
more  than  conquerors  through  Him  that  loved  us  ;  for  I 
am  persuaded  that  neither  death  nor  life,  nor  angels,  nor 
principalities,  nor  things  present  nor  things  to  come,  nor 
height  nor  depth,  nor  any  other  created  thing  shall  be 
able  to  separate  us  for  a  moment  (xcjpio'ai)  from  God's 
love  manifested  towards  us  in  Christ  Jesus  our  Lord  '* 
(vv.  37-39).  It  is  to  this  rapture  of  joy,  this  exultation 
of  victorious  faith  that  Ebel  refers  when  he  concludes 
that  there  is  a  joy,  an  undimmed,  victorious  joy  over  the 
nearness  of  God,  a  delightful  sense  of  dependence,  but 
yet  of  progress  in  spite  of  difficulties,  and  of  growth  in 
spite  of  hinderances,  which  springs  from  the  testimony  of 
a  good  conscience,  /.  e.  the  certain  assurance  of  Divine 
Mercy  and  the  consequent  enjoyment  of  peace.  "  This 
frame  of  mind,"  he  says,  "is  the  inevitable  fruit  of  a 
heart  confirmed  in  the  grace  of  Christ  by  means  of  knowl- 
edge and  experience  ;  it  is  the  kingdom  of  God  within 
us,  the  joy  in  the  Holy  Ghost  springing  from  the  con- 
sciousness of  justification  before  God  and  of  peace  in 
Him  ;  and  the  renewing  and  transforming  power  of  that 
joy  bears  upon  and  interpenetrates  the  whole  texture  of 
our  inner  and  outer  life  in  all  our  relations  to  ourselves 
and  others,  to  fellow  Christians  and  others,  to  friend  and 
foe,  to  high  and  low,  to  rich  or  poor,  in  joy  and  in 
sorrow,  in  living  and  dying,  for  our  strength  is  joy  in 


56  FAITH  VICTORIOUS. 

the  Lord."  And  in  another  place  *  he  exclaims  :  "  Chris- 
tians have  been  traduced  as  melancholy  people  ;  I  know- 
not  any  more  cheerful  and  joyous ;  they  live  under  a 
merciful  God,  and  carry  a  good  conscience  in  a  body 
pure  and  undefiled  by  the  lusts  of  the  flesh,  they  are  sur- 
rounded by  the  countless  good  gifts  of  the  divine  bounty, 
which  they  daily  and  richly  enjoy,  and  they  look  for 
the  life  of  the  world  to  come.  None  of  these  things,  or 
only  very  few  of  them,  are  enjoyed  by  those  who  are 
not  Christians.  For  this  reason  joy  sparkles  in  the 
Christian's  eye,  and  the  peace  of  heaven  irradiates  and 
interpenetrates  the  whole  texture  of  his  existence." 

After  these  references  to  his  inner  life,  and  methods 
of  presenting  the  doctrines  of  salvation,  we  return  to  his 
outward  relations. 

The  parsonage  was  put  in  order,  and  fitted  tip  :  and 
in  order  to  lessen  the  burdens  of  his  father,  he  brought 
three  of  the  other  children  to  Hermsdorf  and  began  his 
o-vvn  domestic  life,  August  8,  1808. 

In  the  parish  he  was  indefatigable.  The  services  were 
well  attended  ;  strictly  devotional  gatherings  answering 
to  prayer-meetings  he  did  not  encourage,  because  he 
considered  them  calculated  to  foster  a  very  undesirable 
spirit  of  exclusiveness,  engendering  prejudice  and  tend- 
ing to  a  species  of  Pharisaism.  But  he  counted  among 
his  parishioners  truly  devout  people,  whom  his  sermons 
had  rendered  thoroughly  awake,  and  who  of  their  own 
accord  would  come  to  him  for  guidance  and  direction. 
And  as  they  came  to  see  him,  so  he  would  visit  them  in 
their  own  homes  ;  in  cases  of  sickness  he  was  unremit- 
ting in  his  ministrations  ;  he  took  a  constant  interest  in 


*  Tages-Anbruck,  p.  159. 


EARLY    MINISTRY.  5/ 

the  schools,  and  in  these  and  many  other  ways  was  able 
to  foster  a  truly  religious  spirit  in  all  the  practical  forms 
of  vital  Christianity.  There  was  a  wholesome  nucleus  in 
the  parish  ever  gathering  strength  and  diffusing  itself  in 
every  direction. 

The  study  of  the  rich  hymnology  of  the  German  lan- 
guage engaged  much  of  his  time  at  Hermsdorf.  He 
loved  to  commit  many  of  those  beautiful  hymns  to  mem- 
ory, and  to  appropriate  the  practical  and  spiritual  in- 
struction they  afford.  These  hymns  are  the  productions 
of  some  of  the  most  thoughtful  and  excellent  men,  and 
are  animated  by  an  element  of  practical  piety,  very  de- 
sirable to  be  cultivated  by  all  Christians,  but  especially 
by  ministers,  who  thus  acquire,  among  other  benefits,  a 
readiness  to  make  proper  choice  of  hymns  in  harmony 
with  the  sermon  and  the  scriptural  lessons.  Ebel  ex- 
celled in  that  way,  and  loved,  moreover,  to  associate 
hymns  with  every  event  of  his  life.  The  importance  of 
the  study  of  hymnology  as  a  most  valuable  factor  in  the 
private  and  public  devotions  of  Christians  can  hardly  be 
exaggerated. 

The  visitation  of  the  schools  absorbed  much  of  his 
time.  Aware  of  their  vast  importance  he  studiously 
tried  to  make  his  influence  tell  in  personal  intercourse 
with  the  children,  through  whom  he  reached  of  course 
their  parents.  He  was  a  great  favorite  with  the  chil- 
dren, whom  he  encouraged  in  their  studies  by  trifling 
presents  tendered  by  way  of  reward  to  those  deserving 
such  distinction  on  account  of  fidelity,  studiousness  and 
good  conduct. 

Opinion  is  divided  on  that  subject,  some  holding  that 
the  acquisition  of  knowledge  should  be  the  highest  aim 
and  greatest  reward  of  youth.  That  may  be  true  as  a 
3* 


58  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

beautiful  theory  in  a  scholastic  commonwealth  of  perfect 
children.  But  youth  in  most  schools  is  anything  but 
perfect,  and  it  is  by  no  means  uncommon,  that  the  dis- 
position of  the  pupils  gives  teachers  far  less  trouble  than 
unreasonable  and  injudicious  influences  pervading  their 
homes.  Rewards  in  the  shape  of  prizes,  judiciously  and 
impartially  awarded  to  the  most  meritorious  pupils  are 
generally  advantageous  to  the  morale  of  the  school  and 
beneficial  to  teachers  and  taught ;  they  work  thus  in  the 
conduct  of  the  family,  they  are  so  regarded  in  our  best 
colleges  and  universities,  and  they  have  precisely  the 
same  effect  in  well  administered  schools  of  lower  grades  ; 
they  are  even  commendable  on  much  higher  ground  as 
the  recognition  of  the  procedure  of  rewards  and  pun- 
ishments revealed  in  Holy  Scripture  as  part  of  God's 
moral  government  of  the  world. 

Ebel's  system  of  catechization  was  also  most  excellent. 
He  did  not  confine  himself  to  questions  addressed  to 
candidates  for  confirmation,  or  the  recently  confirmed 
from  the  chancel,  but  would  go  from  pew  to  pew  and 
address  young  and  old  alike.  He  revived  the  practice 
of  Spener,  to  make  a  lecture  or  a  sermon  a  topic  for 
expanded  instruction,  or  even  of  discussion  after  the 
service.  To  this  end  he  got  some  of  the  more  gifted 
youth  to  write  down  his  discourse  in  the  organ  gallery ; 
and  began  with  interrogating  them  and  others  on  the 
subject  in  hand  ;  questions  would  be  put  by  others,  re- 
vealing the  actual  difficulties  and  wants  of  his  parishion- 
ers, and  enabling  him  in  an  informal  but  thoroughly 
practical  way  to  reach  the  hearts  of  his  hearers  and  to 
influence  their  Hfe.  Nor  did  he  confine  his  catechiza- 
tions  to  church,  but  would  visit  the  catechumens  in  their 
own  homes,  instruct  and  question  them  in  the  presence 


EARLY    MINISTRY.  59 

of  their  friends,  and  try  to  diffuse  information  on  all 
matters  relating  to  education  and  to  topics  of  general 
interest.  He  would  sometimes  share  their  meals,  and  in 
that  way  he  did  much  good,  as  it  enabled  him  to  com- 
pose many  a  difficulty,  and  to  solve  many  a  hard  prob- 
lem. 

In  order  to  diffuse  the  knowledge  of  the  Bible  he 
revived  a  week-day  service,  which  had  fallen  into  desue- 
tude. It  was  a  sort  of  Bible  class  at  which  he  would 
explain  different  portions  of  the  Holy  Scriptures,  and 
encouraged  school-children  to  attend  ;  and  as  their  par- 
ents often  accompanied  them,  he  found  means  to  interest 
them  all.  The  beautiful  hymns  to  which  reference  has 
already  been  made  were  also  drawn  into  the  course  of 
instruction  ;  appropriate  selection  of  those  bearing  on 
the  particular  subject  in  hand  having  been  made,  the 
lessons  or  sentiments  they  embodied  would  be  pointed 
out,  and  the  young  people  encouraged  and  recommended 
to  learn  them  by  heart.  So  there  grew  speedily  around 
him  a  chosen  circle  of  devoted  friends,  young  and  old, 
but  especially  of  catechumens,  on  whom  he  bestowed 
the  utmost  care,  and  who  constituted,  as  it  were,  a  cen- 
tre of  devotion  for  the  whole  parish.  The  catechumens 
were  encouraged  to  maintain  familiar  intercourse  with 
their  pastor  after  confirmation,  and  he  set  apart  special 
days  on  which  he  would  always  be  at  home  to  see  and 
confer  with  them  on  all  matters  they  might  wish  to  bring 
under  his  notice.  His  method  resembled  that  of  one  of 
his  predecessors,  mentioned  by  the  Rev.  Sebastian  Fred- 
eric Trescho,  who  in  a  volume  called  "  Religiose  Nebe?i- 
stunden "  *  (Religious  By-Hours),  develops  the  idea  of 

*  Danzig,  1777. 


6o  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

keeping  up  permanent  intercourse  with  the  confirmed, 
and  indicates  the  means  for  doing  so.  Ebel  found  his 
counsel  in  this  and  many  other  respects  exceedingly 
valuable. 

As  this  subject  is  one  of  the  highest  importance,  and 
engages  the  thoughtful  and  anxious  attention  of  many 
ministers,  who  (although  the  circumstances  are  altogether 
different  both  in  England  and  America)  find  it  a  problem 
of  difficult  solution ;  the  plan  pursued  by  Ebel  may  pos- 
sibly suggest  some  useful  hints,  and  on  that  account  will 
be  perused  with  interest. 

His  first  care  was  that  they  should  not  forget  what 
they  had  learnt ;  he  therefore  reviewed  the  whole  ground 
of  their  instruction,  dwelling  more  particularly  on  neg- 
lected portions,  and  supplemented  additional  matter 
tending  to  deepen  and,  as  it  were,  to  stereotype  the 
whole  by  constant  reference  to  Holy  Scripture ;  he  gave 
special  prominence  to  Bible  History,  and  recommended 
the  committal  of  golden  texts  and  passages,  as  well  as  ot 
the  best  hymns  in  their  collections.  He  urged  self- 
examination,  giving  them  proper  instruction  to  enable 
them  to  distinguish  the  springs  of  motive,  and  the  tend- 
encies of  perverse  or  corrupt  inclinations  ;  he  explained 
the  bearing  of  duty  on  their  changing  relations,  and  its 
application  to  practice,  showing  them  that  as  Christians 
they  should  strive  to  connect  their  religion  with  every 
possible  situation  of  life  ;  he  spoke  to  them  about  choice 
of  occupation  and  domestic  relations  ;  about  work,  ser- 
vice, management,  etc.,  availing  himself  of  every  oppor- 
tunity to  place  before  them  nature  as  the  work  of  God, 
setting  forth  His  wisdom  and  goodness  in  the  vast  oper- 
ations of  the  universe  no  less  than  in  the  smallest  occur- 
rences  and   changes   of   their   daily   observation.      He 


EARLY   MINISTRY,  6l 

likewise  illustrated  to  them  from  a  Christian  point  of 
view  the  constitution,  privileges  and  duties  of  society. 
He  urged  the  necessity  of  worship  and  explained  its 
design,  commending  attention  to  the  preached  word,  and 
above  all  things  the  importance  of  prayer,  and  the  cul- 
ture of  personal  relations  to  the  Saviour.  He  sought 
to  instil  into  their  hearts  the  friendship  of  Jesus,*  to 
encourage  them  to  mutual  friendship  ;  explaining  the 
offices  of  true  friendship  in  the  kind  and  frank  inter- 
change of  confidences,  especially  those  that  would  tend 
to  their  common  improvement,  telling  each  other  their 
faults,  praying  each  for  the  other  ;  he  would  make  in- 
quiries after  the  welfare  of  their  acquaintance,  and  in 
that  way  give  a  practical  turn  to  his  instructions.  Thus 
he  led  them  step  by  step  from  the  narrow  sphere  of  their 
immediate  surroundings  to  wider  and  widening  ranges 
of  thought  and  aim,  dwelling  on  matters  relating  to  the 
welfare  of  their  country,  the  upbuilding  of  the  kingdom 
of  God,  and  Christian  and  philanthropic  agencies,  such 
as  missions,  the  circulation  of  the  Bible,  and  works  of 
charity  and  general  interest. 

While  Ebel  was  thus  working  indefatigably  among  his 
parishioners  at  Hermsdorf,  and  exerting  himself  to  the 
very  best  of  his  ability  to  promote  the  noblest  and  high- 
est interests  of  his  rural  flock,  he  received  (in  1809)  a 
communication  from  the  bureau  of  the  provincial  gov- 
ernment at  Konigsberg,  charged  with  the  supervision  of 
ecclesiastical  and  scholastic  affairs,  known  technically  as 


*  The  collection  of  sermons,  published  in  a  volume,  called  "Z^zV 
Tretce"  (Fidelity),  Konigsberg,  1835  ;  2d  edition,  Basel  and  Lud- 
wigsberg,  1863,  contains  a  beautiful  discourse  on  "  Friendship  with 
Jesus,"  with  particular  reference  to  St.  John,  xv.  15. 


62  FAITH   V.ICTORIOUS. 

"  the  Ecclesiastical  and  Scholastic  Deputation,"  inquir- 
ing "if  it  were  true,  as  they  had  heard,  that  he  was  an 
adherent  of  Schonherr,  and,  if  so,  how  he  could  reconcile 
the  opinions  of  Schonherr  with  the  doctrinal  teaching 
of  the  Evangelical  Lutheran  Church  ? "  This  was  the 
first  signal  of  an  almost  interminable  persecution.  Ebel 
received  it  as  such  from  the  start,  and,  as  the  event 
showed,  he  took  a  correct  view.  Ebel  was  at  Herms- 
dorf,  and  Schonherr  lived  at  Konigsberg.  If  all  the 
Deputation  wanted  to  know  had  been  to  learn  how 
Schonherr's  views  could  be  harmonized  with  the  dogmas 
of  the  Lutheran  Church,  they  need  not  have  written  to 
Hermsdorf,  but  might  have  availed  themselves  of  the 
offer  of  Schonherr  to  subject  his  opinions  to  a  strictly 
scientific  official  examination.  But  they  did  not  accede 
to  his  proposition,  even  to  taking  official  notice  of  his 
request.  The  fact  was  that  Schonherr,  and  his  strong 
biblical  bias,  and  all  that  shared  it,  were  obnoxious  and 
hateful  to  a  body  of  men  who  did  not  receive  the  Bible 
as  the  Word  of  God.  Schonherr,  as  a  private  citizen,  was 
beyond  the  pale  of  their  official  jurisdiction,  but  Ebel, 
as  a  minister,  was  within  it,  and  therefore  they  began 
with  him. 

As  Ebel  held  the  view^s  of  Schonherr  as  private  opin- 
ions, just  as  he  might  have  held  those  of  some  ancient 
philosopher  on  some  other  matter,  it  is  evident  that  the 
Deputation  went  considerably  beyond  their  province, 
which  was  purely  supervisory  in  things  pertaining  to  his 
official  ministrations  ;  neither  they,  nor  any  other  author- 
ity, were  empowered  to  institute  inquiries  violating  the 
liberty  of  conscience.  Their  inquiry,  moreover,  was  not 
addressed  to  Ebel  alone  ;  it  had  likewise  been  sent  to  his 
superintendent    (a   functionary  with  powers   somewhat 


EARLY   MINISTRY.  63 

analogous  to  those  of  a  bishop),  who,  though  far  from 
coinciding  with  Ebel's  philosophical  views,  stated  in  his 
reply  that  "  Ebel  was  very  zealous  in  the  good  cause, 
conscientious  in  everything,  and  especially  in  not  teach- 
ing anything  but  what  an  Evangelical  Lutheran  minister 
was  bound  to  teach." 

Ebel,  for  his  part,  stated  that  he  was  a  personal  friend, 
not  an  adherent,  of  Schonherr,  whose  philosophical  prin- 
ciple he  had  thoroughly  examined,  and  found  it  at  once 
agreeable  to  reason  and  the  teaching  of  Holy  Scripture, 
adding  that  he  was  ready,  should  they  desire  it,  to  estab- 
lish by  scriptural  warranty  any  proposition  contained  in 
Schonherr's  works  they  might  wish  to  submit. 

But  the  Deputation  had  no  such  desire,  and,  as  they 
could  not  push  the  matter  any  further  just  then,  they 
allowed  it  for  a  while  to  "lie  on  the  table." 

In  order  that  the  reader  may  understand  what  will 
presently  engage  his  attention,  it  is  necessary  for  him  to 
know  certain  characteristics  of  Konigsberg  as  the  seat  of 
a  university  and  of  the  provincial  government.  Society 
there  fifty  or  sixty  years  ago  was  utterly  unlike  anything 
to  be  found  outside  of  Germany  ;  neither  England  nor 
the  North  American  Union  have  anything  at  all  compar- 
able, to  it.  The  provincial  governor,  as  the  highest 
representative  of  the  crown,  led  in  all  matters  pertaining 
to  civic  administration,  and  the  vast  army  of  civic  offi- 
cers constituted  one  element  of  society  ;  the  military,  for 
Konigsberg  had  a  garrison,  formed  a  second  ;  and  the 
university,  with  the  higher  clergy,  composed  the  third. 
The  government  at  that  time  was  still  absolute,  and  the 
civil  administration,  including  justice,  more  or  less  pri- 
vate, hedged  in  by  precedents  and  red  tape  well  nigh 
incomprehensible  to  those  familiar  only  with  the  simpler 


64  FAITH  VICTORIOUS. 

forms  prevailing  in  the  United  States,  and  a  narrow, 
bureaucratic  spirit  was  as  common  in  the  State  as  in  the 
Church.  The  Church  was  the  Evangelical  Lutheran 
Church,  administered  by  a  local  Consistory  under  the 
civil  direction  of  the  provincial  governor  {Ober-Prdsi- 
denf),,sind  the  ecclesiastical  supervision  of  a  superintend- 
ent-general, who  sometimes  bears  the  title  of  bishop, 
the  supreme  direction  of  the  whole  belonging  to  the  resort 
of  a  minister  at  Berlin.  The  term  evangelical  denotes  not 
a  peculiar  theological  direction,  but  designates  Protes- 
tant ;  e.  g.j  the  ministers  at  Konigsberg  were  members  of 
the  Evangelical  Lutheran  Church,  but  the  theological 
bias  of  the  greater  number  was  not  what  we  call  evan- 
gelical, understanding  by  that  term  the  reception  of  the 
Bible  as  God-inspired,  the  divinity  of  our  Lord,  and  con- 
formity of  the  lives  of  men  to  the  precepts  of  the  Gospel, 
but  ran  in  the  direction  of  rationalism  and  neology. 

Schonherr  and  Ebel  were  strictly  evangelical  in  the 
modern  acceptation  of  the  term,  and  on  that  account 
odious  to  the  ecclesiastical  authority,  which  resented 
overtly  where  it  could,  and  covertly  where  open  opposi- 
tion was  impracticable  or  impolitic,  a  system  of  teaching 
which  shed  so  unenviable  a  light  on  that  which  they  set 
forth. 

In  1810  the  institution  called  Frederic  College  was 
changed  into  a  gymnasium  ;  an  endowed  church  being 
connected  with  it,  the  managers  were  casting  about  for  a 
fit  person  to  discharge  simultaneously  the  duties  of  pro- 
fessor and  preacher.  An  old  friend  of  Ebel,  State  Coun- 
cillor Nicolovius,  hearing  of  the  vacancy,  wrote  to  him 
on  the  subject  with  the  request  to  apply  for  it.  The 
position  was  just  what  he  was  longing  for.  All  his  family 
lived  at  Konigsberg  ;  he  had  there  an  extended  circle  of 


EARLY    MINISTRY.  65 

personal  friends  and  the  intellectual  resources  at  the 
university  with  its  splendid  library  presented  strong  at- 
tractions, and  the  vacant  position,  should  it  be  tendered 
him,  would  rid  him  of  the  working  of  the  glebe  at  Herms- 
dorf,  for  which  he  had  little  aptitude.  The  question  of 
emoluments  had  nothing  to  do  with  the  matter  ;  his 
friend  Count  Dohna  offered  him  at  this  juncture  a 
country-cure  of  double  the  income  of  that  attached  to 
the  vacancy  at  Konigsberg,  and  with  half  the  work,  but 
he  refused  it.  Pecuniary  considerations  did  not  move 
him  one  way  or  the  other  :  his  wants  were  few,  and  he 
had  been  schooled  and  brought  up  in  frugality  and  self- 
denial  ;  he  acted  on  higher  and  nobler  impulses.  The 
question  he  revolved  in  his  own  mind  was,  where  might 
he  do  most  good,  where  best  fulfil  the  work  which  God 
had  given  him  to  do,  what  was  the  will  of  God  in  the 
matter  ?  To  Him  he  referred  the  decision  in  prayer, 
and  clear  in  his  own  mind  as  to  his  duty,  he  saw  in  the 
communications  he  had  received  an  intimation  to  make 
formal  application  for  the  vacancy  at  Konigsberg.  That 
had  to  be  done  according  to  prescript  rule  and  prece- 
dent. He  knew  there  were  difficulties  in  the  way,  but 
difficulties  never  deter  men  of  his  stamp.  God  would 
clear  them  out  of  the  way,  if  the  way  was  of  God's  ap- 
pointment ;  under  the  dominant  influence  of  that  con- 
viction he  would  progress,  heedless  of  difficulties,  in 
spite  of  hindrances,  obstacles  or  opposition.  He  felt,  in 
fact,  he  knew  for  certain,  that  he  had  enemies,  who 
would  leave  no  stone  unturned  to  thwart  his  purpose. 
The  hostile  movement  against  Schonherr,  and  the  at- 
tempted action  of  the  Deputation  against  himself  as  the 
friend  of  Schonherr  convinced  him  that  his  appointment 
would  be  strongly  opposed,  and  all  sorts  of  official  clii- 


66  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

canery  would  be  liberally  meted  out  to  him.  Though 
he  had  already  filled  very  creditably  the  post  of  collabo- 
rator at  another  gymnasium  in  1804,  and  given  abundant 
proof  of  his  aptness  to  teach,  the  Deputation  fully  com- 
petent under  the  circumstances  to  relieve  him'  from  a 
second  examination,  required  him  at  very  brief  notice, 
precluding  anything  like  preparation  for  it,  to  appear 
before  an  examining  committee,  composed  of  theologians, 
professors  in  theology,  and  pedagogues,  for  the  purpose 
of  being  examined  by  them.  This  was  an  official  in- 
timation that  there  were  breakers  ahead  ;  unofficially  he 
was  informed  that  the  examination  would  not  be  con- 
fined to  his  intellectual  and  scientific  attainments,  but 
extended  to  the  specific  investigation  of  his  philosophi- 
cal views.  The  president  of  the  committee  said  to  him 
in  a  letter  :  "  You  are  a  truth-loving  man,  and  therefore 
will  not  object  to  avow  your  opinions  ;  but  such  avowal 
may  possibly  interfere  with  the  accomplishment  of  your 
purpose,  etc."  He  knew  all  this,  but  committing  the  issue 
to  God,  set  out  for  Konigsberg,  and  presented  himself 
before  the  commission,  passed  a  brilliant  examination, 
and  having  been  found  possessed  of  an  excellent  judg- 
ment and  superior  attainments,  was  appointed  preacher, 
and  teacher  of  Religion,  History  and  Hebrew  in  Frederic 
College,  Sept.  i,  1810.  The  report  of  the  committee 
presented  to  the  Deputation  says  on  the  vexed  subject  of 
his  supposed  heretical  or  sectarian  views,  ''  that  while  his 
eminent  qualifications  for  the  vacant  position  are  unmis- 
takable, he  showed  no  inclination  in  the  direction  of 
mystical  irrational  enthusiasm,  and  as  to  his  peculiar 
ideas  of  the  Nature  of  the  Godhead  they  belonged  alto- 
gether to  the  dry  field  of  idle  metaphysics  ;  "  and  again 
as  to  his  general  qualifications,  as  exhibited  in  a  trial-les- 


EARLY   MINISTRY.  6^ 

son  :  ^'  Ebel  displayed  knowledge,  tact  and  judgment ;  he 
had  a  peculiar  way  in  dealing  with  young  men,  and  quite 
another  in  the  handling  of  the  boys  ;  but  both  were  very 
judicious.  There  was  not  the  faintest  trace  in  anything 
he  said  of  mysticism,  or  opinions  conflicting  with  Protes- 
tant doctrine."  The  official  notification  of  his  appoint- 
ment was  nevertheless  accompanied  by  a  caution  to  the 
effect,  "  that  whereas  his  connection  with  Schonherr  had 
impressed  part  of  the  public  with  an  unfavorable  opinion 
concerning  himself,  he  was  requested  to  avoid  everything 
calculated  to  sustain  that  unfavorable  opinion."  The 
public  referred  to  consisted,  as  the  event  showed,  and  as 
Ebel  had  early  divined,  of  a  very  small  part  of  the 
public  indeed,  for  it  embraced  only  clerical  members  of 
the  very  body  clothed  with  the  appointing  power. 

On  the  day  set  apart  for  the  formal  opening  of  Frederic 
College  under  its  new  constitution,  Ebel  was  solemnly 
instituted  by  the  Consistorial  Councillor  Krause,  who 
spoke  in  the  highest  terms  of  his  eminent  qualifications 
for  the  ministerial  office,  which  he  illustrated  by  details 
carefully  drawn  from  his  past  activity. 

His  new  appointment  entailed  of  course  the  inevitable 
separation  from  his  rural  cure,  where  he  had  so  faithfully 
and  beneficially  labored  during  the  sad  and  trying  years 
of  the  war.  He  preached  his  farewell  sermon  on  Sexa- 
gesima  Sunday,  1811,  based  on  the  Gospel  for  the  day 
(St.  Luke,  viii.  4  sqq.),  reviewing  his  work  among  them, 
and  inquiring  how  much  of  the  good  seed  God  had  sowed 
in  their  midst,  and  what  would  be  the  yield  to  Him.  It 
was  a  sad  and  sorrowful  parting ;  but  it  was  God's  will, 
and  tears  shed  by  eyes  that  were  gladdened  by  his  pres- 
ence, and  warm,  earnest,  affectionate  commendations  to 
the  guardian  care  of  God  accompanied  him. 


68  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

There  had  been  much  in  his  ministry  at  Hermsdorf  to 
try  his  mettle  ;  but  as  it  had  been  wholesome  to  others, 
so  had  it  been  beneficial  to  himself,  trying,  schooling, 
fitting  him  for  future  usefulness.  Taken  altogether,  that 
rural  change  had  brought  him  more  of  felicity  than  of 
trial ;  it  was  there  that  he  matured  in  spiritual  fortitude 
and  progressed  towards  a  higher  measure  of  spiritual 
manhood,  and  next  to  all  the  benefits  which  God  dealt 
out  to  him  in  graces,  He  gave  him  at  Hermsdorf  perhaps 
the  greatest  blessing  of  his  life,  a  lovely,  virtuous  maiden, 
Augusta  Leinweber,  the  eldest  daughter  of  the  burgess 
of  the  neighboring  village  of  Quittainen,  whom  he  mar- 
ried in  1811.  Their  union  was  truly  in  the  Lord,  for  the 
blooming  bride  of  twenty- one  summers  was  devout  and 
God-fearing,  and  every  way  a  helpmeet  for  him  ;  he 
received  her  as  sent  by  God,  and  a  blessing  she  proved 
to  him,  from  that  day  forward,  in  weal  and  in  woe,  in 
sickness  and  health,  till  death  did  them  part  for  a  time. 
And  as  he  received  her,  so  she  received  him,  and  so  did 
her  father,  rejoicing  and  grateful  that  a  man  of  God 
should  have  wooed  and  married  his  child. 

Ebel  was  not  a  narrow-minded  man  ;  but  like  all 
true  Christians  that  rise  above  bare  external  and  hu- 
man considerations  to  the  contemplation  of  the  divine 
element  in  the  church,  he  was  in  the  highest  acceptation 
of  the  term,  catholic.  Now  what  does  that  much  abused 
term  designate  if  it  does  not  mean  the  love  of  the  breth- 
ren, not  only  of  those  belonging  to  that  particular  branch 
or  subdivision  of  the  church  with  which  we  may  happen 
to  be  identified  by  birth,  association,  choice,  or  convic- 
tion, but  of  all  who,  though  differing  with  us  as  to  forms 
or  modes  of  worship,  as  to  certain  tenets  even,  agree 
with  us  in  the  love  of  Jesus,  and  strive,  as  far  as  they 


EARLY   MINISTRY.  69 

know  or  are  able,  to  keep  his  sayings.  That  was  the 
mark  of  Ebel's  catholicity,  even  at  that  early  period  of 
his  ministry.  Where  the  heart  is  right,  and  the  Hie  is 
right,  we  can  all  afford  to  be  charitable  on  points  of  doc- 
trine, and  agree  to  differ.  He  had  made  the  acquaintance 
of  some  excellent  people  attached  to  the  principles  of 
Gichtel ;  their  intercourse  was  marked  by  mutual  forbear- 
ance ;  they  had  no  reluctance  to  avow  their  sentiments  to 
him,  and  he  frankly  owned  his  sympathy  with  the  views 
of  Schonherr.  Their  differences  were  frequently  dis- 
cussed, orally  and  in  writing,  but  as  they  were  equally 
strong  in  their  convictions  and  unable  to  relinquish  them, 
the  differences  were  compromised  in  the  only  true  and 
satisfactory  way  of  an  agreement  to  differ.  This  mutual 
forbearance  and  kindliness  bore  good  fruit  in  the  unin- 
terrupted continuance  of  a  life-long  friendship  ;  and  when 
after  the  lapse  of  years  of  separation  Ebel  sent  to  one  of 
his  Gichtelian  friends  a  volume  of  his  sermons  as  a  token 
of  esteem,  he  acknowledged  the  act  in  these  words  : 

"  We  thank  you  cordially  for  the  communication  of  your 
evangelical  homilies,  blossoms  of  your  heart  and  mind,  fruits 
of  devout  occupation  in  the  closet,  and  thank  God,  faithful 
commentaries  of  your  walk  as  a  Christian,  and  a  teacher  of 
the  people ;  we  thank  you  sincerely  for  the  gift,  and  intend 
to  use  it  as  you  desire.  .  .  .  When  you,  reverend  friend, 
revisit  our  country,  you  will  have  occasion  to  hear  more  of 
our  affairs.  Though  our  views  differ,  there  shall  be  no  ob- 
stacles in  our  hearts,  or  on  our  lips  to  the  common  love  of 
our  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ.  The  blind  world  may 
enroll  both  of  us  in  its  almanac  of  heretics  ;  it  only  stamps  us 
with  the  marks  of  Him  whose  we  are,  and  whom  we  serve, 
each  to  the  best  of  his  ability  and  knowledge." 


CHAPTER  III. 


FREDERIC     COLLEGE. 


.  The  position  at  Frederic  College  was  not  a  sinecure  ; 
it  brought  work  incessant  and  diversified.  From  eighteen 
to  twenty  weekly  recitations  at  school,  pulpit  preparation, 
and  private  lessons  at  home  to  several  young  people,  con- 
stituted the  round  of  his  duties.  In  order  to  promote  the 
education  of  relatives,  and  of  several  friends,  he  assumed 
the  additional  burden  of  their  care.  But  whoever  came 
into  his  home  had  to  submit  to  the  laws  which  governed 
its  conduct,  and  as  those  laws  were  good  and  wise,  they 
conduced  to  the  welfare  of  all  concerned. 

As  a  teacher  he  was  peculiarly  successful.  Absolute 
mastery  of  his  subject,  and  independence  of  text-books, 
coupled  with  clearness  of  statement,  and  fluency  of  utter- 
ance, excited  the  profoundest  interest  of  his  hearers,  and 
made  especially  his  treatment  of  history  very  effective. 
Broad  in  his  views,  and  skilful  in  the  delineation  of  char- 
acter, he  imparted  life-like  reality  to  the  great  personages 
of  profane  and  sacred  history,  and  his  manner  of  portray- 
ing the  heroes  of  the  Old  Testament  impressed  the  large 
number  of  Jewish  pupils  who  attended  the  college  very 
favorably  and  drew  their  confidence  and  affection. 

He  had  joined  the  Paedagogical  Society,  and  in  1814 
delivered  a  lecture  on  "  Religious  Instruction  in  Gym- 

70 


FREDERIC  COLLEGE.  7I 

nasia/*  which  was  favorably  received  by  his  large  au- 
dience composed  of  experienced  schoolmen,  among  them 
the  celebrated  Herbart,  well  known  as  a  profound  thinker 
and  founder  of  a  system  of  philosophy.  The  principles, 
developed  at  length  in  a  subsequent  publication,*  were 
recognized  as  judicious  and  sound. 

Into  this  period  falls  the  production  of  a  Spruchsamm- 
lung,  or  Collection  of  Texts,  designed  to  serve  as  a  guide 
to  systematic  religious  instruction  for  youth.  It  is  called 
in  German  a  Leading  Line  {Leitfaden),  and  answers  the 
purpose  admirably.  It  is  constructed  on  the  principle 
of  gathering  under  leading  heads  passages  of  Scripture 
illustrating  them  ;  e.  g.,  the  leading  thought,  printed  in 
large  type,  is  the  passage.  Obey  your  Teachers,  and 
under  it  follow,  in  small  type,  at  full  length,  Hebr.  xiii. 
17  ;  I  Thess.  v.  12,  13  ;  Heb.  xiii.  7  ;  Lev.  xix.  32  ; 
Coloss.  iii.  21  ;  Rom.  xiii.  i,  7  ;  Coloss.  iv.  i.  In  the 
hand  of  a  judicious  teacher  such  a  collocation  of  pas- 
sages becomes  very  suggestive,  and,  as  explained  to 
children,  tends  to  connect  different  portions  of  the  Word 
of  God  by  association.  The  little  volume  covers  the 
whole  ground  of  practical  religion,  embodies  Luther's 
Lesser  Catechism,  and  gives  in  a  supplement  the  prin- 
ciples of  Christianity.  The  Spruchsammlung  met  a 
real  want,  and  has  been  widely  introduced  throughout 
Germany.  In  1842  it  had  already  reached  a  sixth 
dition. 

A  question  of  considerable  importance  and  difficulty 
had  to  be  solved  in  connection  with  the  attendance  of  the 
pupils  at  church.  Was  it  preferable  to  provide  for  them 
a  special  service,  or  to  allow  them  to  frequent  the  general 

*  Ueber gedeihliche  Erziehung,  Hamburg,  1825. 


72  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

service  ?  The  former  plan  had  been  adopted  by  the 
promoters  of  new  ideas  and  carried  to  extremes  of  almost 
incredible  absurdity ;  they  had  provided  sermons  on 
agriculture  and  secular  topics,  and  extended  their  mania 
of  specializing  even  to  vaccination.  Ebel  put  a  stop  to 
such  nonsensical  irreverence,  and  returned  to  the  good 
old  plan  of  providing  one  service  for  young  and  old 
alike,  and  struck  the  right  note  in  advocating  freedom  of 
choice,  requiring  the  students  to  attend  service  some- 
where, but  leaving  the  choice  of  the  particular  church 
to  themselves.  The  effect  of  his  ruling  was  highly  grati- 
fying, for,  as  he  was  a  very  attractive  and  interesting 
preacher,  the  majority  frequented  the  College  Church. 
His  choice  of  topics  was  judicious  and  striking.  Here 
are  two  or  three  :  ^'  The  Coming  of  Christ  Brings  Joy," 
"  Cheerfulness  in  tlie  Discharge  of  Duty,"  *'  The  Uses  of 
Bad  Examples,"  etc.  It  was  his  rule,  as  teacher  of  relig- 
ion, during  the  week,  to  question  the  pupils  on  the  ser- 
mon they  had  heard,  and  to  enforce  the  lessons  it  had 
taught ;  the  older  pupils  were  required  to  write  essays  on 
them.  The  religious  recitations  became  as  popular  at 
Frederic  College  as  they  had  been  at  the  Old  Town 
Gymnasium,  and  their  impressions,  in  many  instances, 
deepened  into  abiding  conviction.*  The  whole  college 
assembled  daily  at  church  before  the  recitations  began. 
At  this  Morning  Prayer  Ebel  Avould  select  striking 
situations  from  the  lives  of  Bible  characters,  sketch 
them  rapidly  and  pointedly,  accompanied  by  practical 
reflections  designed  to  touch  the  hearts  and  quicken  the 
thoughts  of  his  youthful  audience  to  follow  the  good 
examples  held  up  for  their  admiration.  These  brief 
addresses  were  concluded  with  prayer.  Then  school 
work  began.     His  relations  to  the  pupils  were  delightful ; 


FREDERIC   COLLEGE.  73 

the  younger  looked  up  to  him  as  to  a  father,  the  older 
loved  him  as  a  brother  and  friend.  Through  the  pupils 
he  gained  the  confidence,  esteem,  and  affection  of  their 
parents.  But  his  very  success  in  all  these  respects  was 
insufficient  to  overcome  the  invincible  prejudice  with 
which  his  theological  opponents  watched  his  doings,  and 
sought  to  undermine  his  influence  by  the  insinuation  of 
separatistic  teaching.  Two  of  their  number  carried  the 
matter  so  far  that  they  forbade  their  boys  to  frequent  the 
religious  recitations,  but,  as  the  boys  remained  in  the 
school,  the  opposition  did  not  gather  the  strength  they 
had  expected. 

The  College  Chapel  was  rather  small,  and  its  diminu- 
tive proportions  were  the  theme  of  ridicule  to  deter  peo- 
ple from  going  there.  True,  it  was  not  as  large  as  some 
of  the  other  churches  of  Konigsberg,  but  it  was  crowded, 
and  the  worshippers  made  its  appearance  more  worthy  by 
providing  chandeliers  and  decorating  the  chancel  with 
appropriate  ornaments.  Outsiders,  attracted  by  the  vital 
truths  so  earnestly  and  eloquently  set  forth  by  Ebel, 
came  in  such  numbers  that  the  scant  accommodation  of 
the  chapel  was  altogether  inadequate,  and  the  adjacent 
school-rooms  had  to  be  opened  for  their  use.  Nor  is  it 
at  all  difficult  to  explain  the  phenomenon  of  his  popular- 
ity. He  was  the  only  preacher  at  Konigsberg  who  set 
forth  the  truths  of  salvation  and  insisted  upon  the  neces- 
sity of  personal  holiness  and  practical  piety.  The  people 
were  nauseated  with  rationalism,  and  longed  for  more 
palatable,  more  wholesome  food.  The  contrast  was  too 
marked  to  escape  observation  and  induce  inquiry.  The 
people  were  being  awakened,  and  in  some  instances  they 
were  awake.  The  public  opinion  of  Ebel,  of  course, 
was  divided.  That  is  always  the  case  where  the  Word  of 
4 


74  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

God  is  preached  truly  and  earnestly  ;  the  Gospel  neces- 
sarily cuts  asunder  and  separates,  as  in  the  hearts,  the 
true  from  the  false,  so,  in  the  masses,  the  lovers  of  truth 
from  those  who  refuse  to  receive  it.  Some  held  that 
Ebel  taught  the  way  of  God  in  truth  ;  others  that  he  was 
deceiving  the  people.  He  was  sneered  at  by  some  as  "  a 
preacher  of  grace,"  while  others  did  not  hesitate  publicly 
to  declare  that  he  was  the  best,  in  fact  the  only  popu- 
lar preacher.  On  one  occasion,  when  some,  at  a  social 
gathering,  had  given  vent  to  their  dislike  of  Ebel's  views 
and  preaching  in  attempts  to  ridicule  and  caricature 
them,  a  gentleman  of  high  culture  and  social  standing, 
and  withal  gifted  with  ready  utterance,  quietly  corrected 
the  sneerers  by  reproducing  them  as  to  their  substance. 
The  odium  theologicum  tried  hard  to  cry  him  down,  but 
it  could  not  be  done,  for  the  people  heard  him  gladly, 
and  it  became  the  general  opinion  that  his  preaching  was 
powerful  and  unlike  that  of  other  scribes. 

During  the  exciting  period  of  political  convulsion  ter- 
minating with  the  downfall  of  Napoleon  (i 812-18 15),  he 
frequently  adverted  to  passing  events  in  his  sermons,  for 
the  purpose  of  stirring  up  patriotic  feelings  and  deepen- 
ing the  faith  of  his  hearers  in  the  shaping  hand  of  God's 
overruling  Providence.  In  that  time  of  fearful  anxiety 
the  ecclesiastical  authorities  of  Prussia  had  recommended 
week-day  services  as  a  means  of  promoting  patriotism. 
They  were  held  on  Wednesday  evenings,  conducted  by 
Ebel,  and  largely  attended.  A  sermon  preached  at  that 
time,  bearing  the  title,  "  The  Holy  War,"  reflects  the  pre- 
vailing sentiments  of  the  period,  and  the  manner  in  which 
he  sought  to  shape  them  for  high  and  holy  ends.  He 
specifies  the  causes  which  induced  Prussia  to  declare 
war  against  Napoleon  in  these  words : 


FREDERIC   COLLEGE.  75 

"  The  causes  are  holy,  if  we  take  the  sword  in  defence  of 
sacred  possessions;  if  we  are  called  upon  to  defend  and  fight 
for  liberty  of  conscience  to  worship  God  according  to  the  pre- 
cepts of  His  sacred  Word,  and  to  serve  Him  in  spirit  and  in 
truth;  for  intellectual  liberty,  without  which  science  and  art 
cannot  prosper;  for  independence  from  foreign  tyranny, 
which  would  crush  and  deprive  us  of  the  blessings  of  peace 
which  God  dispenses;  for  the  inalienable  rights  to  our  life 
and  property,  without  whose  enjoyments  the  higher  ends  of 
our  existence  are  impossible.  These  are  the  causes  of  this 
war,  and  we  may  rest  assured  that  a  war  founded  on  such 
causes  is  acceptable  to  God,  and  must  conduce  to  the  benefit 
of  mankind,  to  our  contemporaries,  and  to  future  genera- 
tions." 

And  as  to  the  spirit  in  which  this  war  was  to  be  waged, 
he  gave  utterance  to  thoughts  which  must  have  stirred 
the  hearts  and  ennobled  the  aims  of  his  hearers  : 

"  If  this  war  for  such  high  and  holy  ends  is  to  succeed,  it 
must  be  commenced,  continued,  and  consummated  in  mutual 
tmion  and  confidence. — I  pause  to  shed  a  tear  of  sorrow  over 
thy  sins,  unhappy  fatherland,  so  deeply  humiliated  and  de- 
graded. What  ?  You  seek  peace  without,  and  yet  are  at 
war  within  ?  Are  there  not  many  in  our  midst  who  prefer 
the  manners,  the  boastfulness  and  flatteries  of  the  trifling  and 
frivolous  stranger  to  the  simplicity,  honesty  and  sturdiness 
of  a  near  and  sincere  people  ?  It  is  high  time,  dear  brethren, 
that  you  should  return  to  soberness  of  mind  and  abandon  the 
delusion  to  take  grandiloquent  lies  for  truth,  appearance  for 
reality.  Cease  to  be  ensnared  and  befooled.  It  is  not  dis- 
grace to  avow    error,  and  honor  truth,  for  without  truth  we 

cannot  live May  the  spirit  of  peace  and  concord 

dwell  amongst  us.  Under  the  cross  of  Christ  let  us  celebrate 
a  great  feast  of  reconciliation ;  here  where  our  sins  are  for- 
given, let  us  forget  and  forgive  others.  Here  let  us  open 
wide  the  gates  of  our  hearts  to  welcome  the  distant  brothers 


^6  FAITH  VICTORIOUS. 

who  still  serve  the  enemy  [allusion  to  the  fact  that  certain 
portions  of  Germany  were  still  with  Napoleon,  when  Prussia 
gave  the  signal  to  rise],  w^henever  they  return  to  a  sense 
of  dignity  to  unite  with  us  in  the  defence  of  the  common 
weal."     .... 

After  enumerating  the  duties  of  self-denial  and  self- 
sacrifice,  the  voluntary  surrender  of  all  they  prized,  he 
urges  spiritual  sacrifice  in  prayer  : 

"Let  no  one  doubt,"  he  concludes,  "  that  the  Omniscient 
Ruler  of  our  destinies  who  from  on  high  beholds  the  under- 
takings of  the  children  of  men,  will  hear  our  earnest  heart- 
felt prayer,  and  crown  with  glorious  victory  and  heavenly 
blessing  our  efforts  to  secure  His  own  ends  through  Him. 
He  will  be  on  our  side,  because  we  are  on  His  side,  He  will 
not  leave  us,  because  we  do  not  leave  Him.  Fear  not  the 
anger,  the  cunning,  the  hatred  or  the  strength  of  the  enemy 
against  whom  we  defend  our  most  sacred  rights.  Do  not 
abandon  confident  assurance,  grow  not  weary  in  prayer,  and 
relax  not  your  courage  in  the  conflict,  waver  not  in  your 
faith,  for  they  that  wait  upon  the  Lord,  shall  renew  their 
strength.  And  whoever  now  or  hereafter  hears  the  call  to 
arms,  his  vocation  as  a  warrior,  or  who  volunteers  to  take 
his  place  in  the  ranks  of  the  valiant  defenders  of  our  beloved 
country,  let  him  unsheath  the  sword  and  take  up  arms  in 
faith,  wield  them  in  this  righteous  and  holy  cause  after  the 
mind  and  purpose  of  God,  and  fight  and  triumph  ivith  God 
for  ki7ig  and  fatherland  !  [the  Prussian  war-cry].  Let  him 
fight  with  his  hands,  but  cry  to  God  in  his  heart.  In  that 
way  he  will  certainly  discover  ev.ery  stratagem  and  overcome 
every  obstacle  the  enemy  can  devise,  break  asunder  every 
disgraceful  bond,  shake  off  every  galling  fetter  which  would 
compel  us  to  act  against  conviction.  With  God,  dear  brethren, 
we  will  do  deeds,  to  put  an  end  to  every  spiritual  thraldom, 
to  every  obstacle  to  progress,  and  barrier  to  truth !" 


FREDERIC  COLLEGE.  77 

Such  preaching  told  at  Konigsberg  ;  its  strong,  manly, 
patriotic  ring  could  not  fail  to  impress  the  people  who 
had  groaned  so  long  under  the  iron  heel  of  foreign  and 
domestic  oppression.  They  yearned  for  freedom,  and 
though  years  had  to  pass  before  they  got  it — and  indeed 
they  are  far  from  having  it  yet — the  yearning  was  there, 
slumbering  in  their  hearts,  and  Ebel  gave  it  utterance 
with  no  uncertain  sound. 

He  was  not  a  sentimentalist ;  he  did  not  believe  in 
purely  emotional  preaching  ;  that  he  held  to  be  contrary 
to  our  noblest  intuitions,  deceptive  and  highly  injurious. 
"Dwelling  chiefly  on  feeling,"  he  said,  '^  is  not  truly 
human,  but  is  deceptive  and  hurtful.  Not  truly  human 
in  that  it  accords  to  feeling  an  unduly  exalted  place  in 
our  nature,  which  in  its  ultimate  aims  destines  man  for 
a  bliss  involving  the  necessary  antecedents  of  conscious- 
ness, personal  perception  of  the  truth,  and  decision  ;  in 
all  these  respects  feeling  occupies  a  very  low  place.  It 
is  deceptive  in  that  it  encourages  the  confounding  of 
transient  emotional  ebullitions  with  permanent  religious- 
ness or  piety,  inducing  men  to  form  exaggerated  concep- 
tions of  imaginary  growth,  and  to  foster  spiritual  pride 
and  conceit.  For  feeling,  or  emotion,  though  prompted 
by  grace,  is  extremely  deceptive,  unless  it  lead  to  im- 
mediate decision,  and  manifest  itself  in  faith,  and  unin- 
terrupted fidelity."*  One  secret  of  the  success  of  his 
sermons  was  a  happy  blending  of  heart  and  mind  ;  he 
touched  his  hearers  in  warm,  glowing  words  that  reached 
their  heart,  and  he  tried  to  convince  their  understand- 
ings. They  presented  a  singular  contrast  to  the  dreary, 
hollow,  metaphysical,  dead  speculations  of  emasculated 

'^Die  Apostolische  Predigtist  zeitgemdss^''  Hamburg,  1835,  p.  92  sq. 


78  FAITH  VICTORIOUS. 

Christianity,  which  in  the  guise  of  rationaHzing  morality- 
was  the  spiritual  food  of  the  good  people  of  Konigsberg. 
In  those  days  there  was  not  a  single  pulpit  in  that  city, 
besides  Ebel's,  where  wholesome  gospel  doctrine  was 
preached  ;  faith,  renovation,  personal  holiness  were  not 
so  much  as  breathed  ;  not  a  word  was  said  about  recon- 
ciliation and  the  atonement,  and  the  one  man  who  pro- 
fessed evangelical  sentiments,  I  mean  Borowski,  took 
good  care  not  to  shock  his  hearers  with  such  unfashion- 
able themes,  and  avoided  to  pollute  his  lips  or  their  ears 
with  allusions  to  the  devil,  who  was,  of  course,  a  myth. 
No  one  preached  sin,  that  was  a  myth  ;  or  faith,  that 
was  weakness  ;  or  that  the  Bible  was  the  Word  of  God, 
that  was  a  delusion  ;  or  that  Christ  was  God  and  died 
for  our  sins,  that  was  nonsense  ;  there  were  plenty  who 
taught  that  God  did  not  create  the  world  in  six  days, 
that  the  narrative  of  the  fall  was  a  metaphorical  descrip- 
tion of  inward  temptation  ;  that  the  biblical  dogma  of 
the  Trinity  must  not  be  taken  Hterally,  for  that  would 
amount  to  tritheism,  but  should  be  explained  as  anthro- 
pomorphism and  anthropopathism ;  that  Christ's  return 
to  judgment  was  an  allegory,  or  a  dramatic  representation, 
and  that  punishment  itself  must  not  be  understood  to  im- 
ply eternal  duration,  for  all  would  ultimately  be  saved. 

Bearing  this  in  mind,  it  is  not  difficult  to  see  why  the 
growing  popularity  of  a  preacher  who  swept  all  this  kind 
of  preaching  aside  as  dust  and  cobwebs,  was  not  at  all 
palatable  to  those  clergymen  who  saw  their  own  congre- 
gations thinning  and  their  hearers  flock  to  the  Chapel  of 
Frederic  College.  The  thing  rankled  in  their  hearts,  and 
they  eagerly  waited  for  a  suitable  opportunity  to  check 
the  movement ;  they  thought  it  had  come  in  a  fast-day 
sermon  of  Ebel's  on  St.  Matth.  xi.  25,  28,  "  I  thank  thee,  O 


FREDERIC   COLLEGE.  79 

Father,  Lord  of  heaven  and  earth,  because  thou  hast  hid 
these  things  from  the  wise  and  prudent,  and  hast  revealed 
them  unto  babes,"  and  "  Come  unto  me  all  ye  that  labor 
and  are  heavy  laden  and  I  will  give  you  rest,"  in  which 
he  pointed  out  that  it  was  futile  to  expect  that  science 
without  revelation  could  remedy  the  crying  evils  of  the 
time.  There  appears  to  have  been  present  among  his 
audience  at  the  time  "  a  credible  man,"  who  informed 
the  Deputation  that  his  teaching  was  unsound,  or  some- 
thing to  that  effect,  whereupon  that  body  officially 
charged  him  "with  the  frequent  utterance  of  convic- 
tions in  his  sermons  and  lectures  which  might  lead  to 
dangerous  misapprehensions,  threatening  to  obscure  the 
purity  of  the  religious  mind  of  the  rising  generation,  and 
seeming  to  betray  an  attachment  to  the  principles  of  a 
separatistic  sect  incompatible  with  evangelical  tenets," 
requiring  him  "to  explain  the  matter,  as  well  as  his 
present  relations  to  Schonherr." 

Ebel  did  not  know  what  to  make  of  that  vague  official 
notice,  and  hesitated  to  comply  with  the  request  for 
a  while  ;  he  took,  however,  occasion,  in  a  private  letter 
to  a  member  of  the  Deputation,  to  express  the  hope  that 
that  body  would  gradually  become  convinced  of  their 
error,  and  save  him  the  sad  necessity  of  telling  them,  for 
conscience's  sake,  some  plain  truths.  Disappointed  in 
this  respect,  and  pressed  for  a  reply,  he  wrote  one,  which, 
for  straightforward  outspokenness  and  manly  courage, 
presents  a  striking  contrast  to  the  vague  insinuations 
of  the  anonymous  credible  accuser,  and  the  still  vaguer 
inferences  of  the  Deputation.  It  is  quite  lengthy,  though 
to  the  point,  and  in  every  respect  a  triumphant  vindica- 
tion of  his  position.  He  indignantly  repelled  and  re- 
futed the  innuendoes  of  the  Deputation,  and  concluded 


8o  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

with  the  sentence,  referring  to  Schonherr,  ''With  God 
and  for  his  truth  we  are  not  afraid,  though  a  host  should 
be  against  us  ;  if  God  be  for  us,  who  can  be  against  us  ? " 

This  bold  and  defiant  language  did  not  suit  the  Depu- 
tation, who,  within  a  week  (June  21,  1814)  from  the 
date  of  Ebel's  reply,  forwarded  it  with  all  the  documents, 
including  the  printed  works  of  Schonherr,  to  the  Minis- 
ter at  Berlin,  accompanied  by  a  report  specifying  that 
"  Ebel  had  always  approved  himself  as  an  honest  man  of 
blameless  purity  ;  that  his  pre-eminent  and  fascinating 
ability  in  the  pulpit  and  the  school-room,  affecting  young 
and  old  alike,  would  make  him  an  ornament  of  Frederic 
College  but  for  his  sectarian  tendency,  and  that,  consid- 
ering his  qualities  of  heart  and  mind,  they  had  reason  to 
suppose  he  would  recover  independence  of  thought  if  he 
could  be  removed  from  the  influence  of  Schonherr,"  con- 
cluding with  the  recommendation  that  he  be  suspended 
from  ministerial  functions  and  removed  to  a  scholastic 
position. 

The  Ministerium  for  Ecclesiastical  Affairs  in  Berlin, 
the  highest  authority  in  Prussia,  examined  the  report  of' 
the  Deputation,  and  at  the  instance  of  Schleiermacher, 
the  distinguished  theologian,  to  whom  the  matter  had 
been  referred,  negatived  their  recommendations,  accom- 
panied by  a  severe  censure  of  their  action.  As  this  is  a 
very  important  document  of  great  ability,  it  is  here  repro- 
duced.    It  bears  date  August  28,  18 14,  and  runs  : 

"The  Ecclesiastical  and  School  Deputation  has  taken  in 
hand  a  very  precarious  affair,  requiring  the  most  cautious 
and  careful  treatment,  seeing  that  it  contemplates  a  limita- 
tion and  even  a  revocation  of  the  liberty  of  teaching  of  a 
teacher  in  the  church  and  school.  The  proper  mode  of  pro- 
cedure on  the  part  of  the  Deputation  ought  to  have  been  to 


FREDERIC   COLLEGE.  8 1 

begin  with  a  clearly-defined  conception  of  the  nature  and 
limits  of  the  liberty  of  evangelical  teaching  as  bearing  on 
the  case  of  teachers  in  the  church  and  school  as  contrasted 
with  learned  inquirers  in  universities,  and  having,  upon  ex- 
haustive investig'ation  of  the  matter,  formed  a  definite  and 
complete  exposition  of  the  alleged  errors  of  Schonherr,  to 
have  submitted  the  same  to  the  judgment  of  the  Ministerium. 
Schonherr's  printed  work,  which  has  been  forwarded,  is  not 
sufficient  for  the  purpose,  for  it  contains  only  cosmogonical 
explanations,  designed  to  establish  the  authority  of  the  Bible, 
and  without  any  danger  to  the  interests  of  morality.  .  .  . 
And  as  to  Schonherr's  conduct,  vyhich,  in  the  opinion  of  the 
Deputation,  is  supposed  to  stamp  him  as  a  fanatic  and  sect- 
ary, Ebel's  declarations  on  the  subject  appear  throughout  so 
definite,  ingenuous,  and  credible,  that  the  Ministerium  cannot 
pronounce  an  adverse  decision,  seeing  that  the  report  of  the 
Deputation  lacks  all  authentic  and  contradictory  data." 

On  the  subject  of  Ebel's  relations  to  Schonherr  the 
document  declares  : 

"  Their  personal  intercourse  and  friendship  are  purely  irrel- 
evant, as  it  does  not  lie  within  the  competence  of  public 
authorities  to  hold  their  subordinates  responsible  for  their 
company,  so  long  as  it  is  not  in  manifest  conflict  with  the 
laws  of  morality  and  of  the  State,  or  does  not  withdraw  them 
from  the  discharge  of  official  duty.  The  specified  separate 
expressions  alleged  by  the  Deputation  to  have  been  made  by 
Ebel,  are  so  general  that  they  might  have  been  made  by  any 
one  without  being  an  adherent  of  Schonherr.  But  they  do 
not  reflect  unfavorably  on  Ebel  in  any  other  respect.  For 
his  expressions  on  the  value  of  science  as  connected  with 
religion  ought  to  have  been  given  verbatijn  in  the  connection 
in  which  they  were  used  in  order  to  pass  a  correct  opinion  of 
them,  and  whoever  treats  in  the  pulpit  or  in  the  school  of 
the  dogma  of  the  devil  does  not  transgress  the  limits  of  the 
evangelical  liberty  of  teaching,  for  it  cannot  be  demonstrated 


82  FAITH   VICTORIOUS; 

that  it  is  not  founded  on  Holy  Scripture As  the 

Deputation  has  seen  fit,  without  proofs  resulting  from  thor- 
ough and  exhaustive  investigation,  to  begin  with  severe  accusa- 
tions against  Ebel  without  anything  to  substantiate  them,  it 
is  not  by  any  means  surprising  that  Ebel  construes  their  pro- 
cedure as  contradicting  the  express  declaration  of  the  Depu- 
tation that  they  did  not  wish  in  the  least  to  curtail  the  evan- 
gelical liberty  of  teaching,  and  in  his  reply  assumes  the  posi- 
tion of  an  opponent,  and  the  Deputation  has  accorded  him 
that  prerogative  by  their  reference  of  the  case  to  the  decision 
of  the  Ministerium  without  having  furnished  the  necessary 
proofs  of  their  assertions.  This  exposition  of  the  case  renders 
it  evident  that  the  Ministerium  is  unable  to  decide  it  accord- 
ing to  their  recommendations.  The  report  and  its  accom- 
panying documents  establish  abundantly  that  Ebel  does  not 
deserve  to  be  either  removed  or  supended  from  the  functions 
of  a  teacher  in  the  church  and  the  school.  To  visit  him  with 
either  would  be  inconsistent  and  an  act  of  violence,  and  lay 
the  Ministerium  open  to  the  suspicion  of  a  spirit  of  persecu- 
tion, against  which  it  believes  to  have  cause  to  warn  the 
Deputation.'' 

This  Ministerial  Rescript  was  a  nauseous  draught  ad- 
ministered to  the  Deputation,  but  like  many  nauseous 
medicines  it  had  salutary  effects,  for  it  taught  the  gentle- 
men that  it  was  not  safe  to  persecute  a  man  like  Ebel, 
whom  the  highest  authority  in  the  State  pronounced  ab- 
solutely free  from  all  the  terrible  charges  which  they  had 
brought  against  him,  and  that  even  his  private  philosophical 
convictions  were  declared  on  the  same  authority  to  be  war- 
ranted by  Holy  Scripture.  The  immediate  result  of 
the  Rescript  was  not  only  an  effectual  cessation  of  open 
hostility  on  the  part  of  the  Deputation,  but  as  its  tenor 
became  known,  an  increasing  popularity  of  the  persecuted 
minister. 


FREDERIC    COLLEGE.  83 

And  how  did  Ebel  behave  under  this  unprovoked  and 
bitter  hostiUty  ?  He  was  cheerful  and  full  of  faith,  and 
practised  what  he  taught.  In  the  Conference  Room  of 
the  college  was  suspended  the  portrait  of  Dr.  Lysius, 
the  founder  of  the  institution  and  his  predecessor  in  the 
Ministry,  with  the  inscription  : 

Nichis  7nehr  dii  lieber  Herre  tnein, 
Dein  Tod  soil  niir  das  Leben  sein. 

He  also  had  been  reviled  as  a  heretic  and  a  sectary. 
That  picture  and  its  history  gave  him  consolation  and 
encouragement  in  his  trials  ;  it  refreshed  his  soul,  for  he 
felt  that  he  preached  the  word  of  reconciliation,  and  that 
he  was  persecuted  solely  because  he  preached  pure,  un- 
adulterated prophetical  and  apostolical  doctrine.  The 
persecution  he  regarded  as  a  token  of  divine  favor  and 
a  seal  to  his  ministry  ;  it  deepened  his  piety,  increased 
his  faith,  and  augmented  his  zeal. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


O  L  D-T  OWN      CHURCH. 


I  HAVE  already  referred  to  Ebel's  growing  popularity. 
Several  of  the  larger  parishes  desired  his  ministrations, 
and  although  hostile  influences  were  silently  at  work  to 
prevent  his  promotion,  the  feeling  in  his  favor  was  so 
strong  and  pronounced,  that  the  largest  parish  in  the 
city  chose  him  for  their  Pastor  on  January  8,  1816.  He 
preached  his  first  sermon  from  2  Cor.  i.  24  :  "  Not  for 
that  we  have  dominion  over  your  faith,  but  are  helpers  of 
your  joy  ;  for  by  faith  ye  stand."  It  was  a  noble  effort, 
very  characteristic  of  the  man  ;  he  showed  that  a  good 
and  true  minister,  so  far  from  seeking  to  establish  a 
dominion  over  the  faith  of  his  parishioners,  dares  not, 
cannot  and  will  not  prostitute  and  caricature  his  sacred 
office  by  arrogating  to  himself  any  such  domination  ;  not 
as  a  spiritual  despot  but  as  a  helper  of  their  joy  he  had 
come  into  their  midst.  These  were  its  leading  thoughts  ; 
but  that  there  should  be  no  misapprehension  as  to  what 
he  understood  joy  to  import,  he  took  occasion  to  turn  to 
the  open  Bible  and  said  : 

"  j\Iy  dear  congregation,  with  this  book  in  my  hand  I  pur- 
pose always  to  come  to  you  ;  and  not  only  with  the  book,  but 
with  a  heart  overflowing  with  the   profoundest   veneration 
for  all   it  contains,    and   yearning  to  impart  to  you  all  the 
84 


OLD-TOWN   CHURCH.  85 

blessed  truths  of  its  sacred  pages.  Whenever  I  ascend  this 
pulpit,  from  which  the  sainted  Neumann  used  to  catechize  me 
as  a  child  in  the  truths  of  this  book,  I  will  point  to  it;  when- 
ever I  ascend  that  altar  where  my  grandfather,  my  father  and 
I  professed  the  Christian  faith  and  were  confirmed,  I  shall 
feel  under  ever-new  obligations  to  preach  to  you  Christ ;  and 
whenever  you  draw  near  in  confession  *  to  yonder  seat,  where 
the  godly  Erhard  Jacob  Jester  and  his  father  spoke  to  you 
the  words  of  life  and  spent  themselves  in  the  service  of  God, 
your  confidence  will  encourage  me  to  proclaim  to  you  the 
truth  and  comfort  of  the  Word  of  God,  and  what  it  requires 
you  to  do.  Yea,  wherever  and  whenever  I  have  to  lift  my 
voice  in  your  hearing,  in  the  chamber  of  sorrow  and  bereave- 
ment, at  festal  gatherings  of  joyous  occasions,  I  will  ever 
announce  to  you  the  everlasting  truth,  so  that  the  hearts 
of  parents  may  be  gladdened  by  the  consecration  of  their 
children,  the  sick  refreshed,  the  mourner  comforted,  and 
the  dying  prepared  in  faith  for  the  bliss  to  come,  with  the 
last  look  of  their  eyes,  and  a  farewell  pressure  of  their  hand 
bear  me  testimony  that  I  was  a  helper  of  their  joy." 

The  allusions  in  this  extract  require  an  explanatory 
paragraph.  The  Old-Town  Church  was  truly  his  spiritual 
home,  full  of  the  most  tender  and  touching  associations. 
His  grandfather,  his  father  and  himself  had  been  con- 
firmed in  the  venerable  edifice.  There  stood  a  pillar 
near  which  his  grandmother  had  consecrated  his  father  in 
maternal  tenderness  to  the  service  of  God.  There  for 
three  generations  the  Ebels  had  been  wont  to  worship 
God  ;  both  his  father  and  he,  as  scholars  of  the  Latin 
School,  had  filled  the  office  of  acolytes  at  its  altar  ;  there 
he  had  been  catechized  ;  there  his  father  had  been  pre- 
centor, and  Ebel,  blessed  with  a  full,  melodious  voice, 

*  Confession  in  the  Lutheran  Church  is  a  devotional  service  pre- 
paratory to  Communion. 


86  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

had  often  represented  his  father  in  that  office  at  mattins, 
led  the  song  of  the  congregation,  and  as  the  voice  of  the 
youth  had  rehearsed  the  praises  of  God  in  many  an  old 
and  beautiful  choral,  so  now  in  the  first  maturity  of  his 
manhood  the  same  voice  rehearsed  the  praise  and  glory 
of  the  same  God  in  the  message  of  the  Gospel.  His 
father's  joy  at  his  promotion  was  unbounded. 

"What  a  blessing,"  he  wrote,  "  what  happiness  that  I  am 
permitted  to  see  my  son  lead  souls  to  Christ !  How  much 
greater,  how  ecstatic  will  be  our  bliss,  when  we  and  our  flocks 
shall  appear  before  the  Shepherd  and  Bishop  of  our  souls  to 
blend  our  praises  with  His  and  to  reign  with  Him  !  Let 
others  joy  over  the  enlightenment  they  have  found  in  the 
nineteenth  century,  we  will  joy  and  rejoice  in  the  Lord  who 
died  for  our  sins  and  rose  for  our  justification." 

The  truly  evangelical  turn  which  now  marked  the  relig- 
ious convictions  of  the  elder  Ebel  had  been,  under  God's 
merciful  guiding,  one  of  the  sweetest  first  fruits  of  the 
younger's  ministry.* 

Friends  near  and  at  a  distance  had  been  gladdened  by 
his  preferment.  From  his  old  country  cure  came  words 
of  congratulation: 

"We  thank  you,"  wrote  his  kind  and  grateful  friends,  "for 
telling  us  that  you  have  been  chosen  preacher  of  the  Old- 
Town  Church.     We  are  one  and  all  delighted  at  the  news, 

*  This  excellent  man  held,  during  the  last  years  of  his  life,  the 
pasorate  at  Goldbach,  near  Tapiau.  He  was  called  away  in  1823, 
in  the  sixty-sixth  year  of  his  life,  after  a  brief  illness.  Before  his 
peaceful  and  happy  departure,  he  summoned  his  friends  to  his  bed- 
side and  sang  with  them  the  beautiful  hymn,  ''  Man  lobt  dich  inder 
Stille,"  and  dwelt  with  great  delight  on  the  love  of  his  children, 
who,  on  that  account,  he  felt  sure,  must  be  happy.  His  confidence 
was  prophetic. 


OLD-TOWN   CHURCH.  87 

and  continue  to  take  the  warmest  interest  in  your  welfare, 
rejoiced  at  your  success  and  your  promotion,  uniting  our 
praises  with  yours  to  Lord  God  Abiiighty,  merciful  and  just, 
for  answering  our  prayers  and  frustrating  the  designs  of  your 
enemies.  .  ,  .  All  the  good  people  that  know  and  love 
you,  share  your  joy.  I  told  some,  whom  I  knew  to  be  your 
friends,  of  the  good  news,  and  they  burst  out  in  jubilant  re- 
joicings. Count  Donhof  told  me  he  had  felt  sure  that  the 
choice  would  fall  on  the  dear,  good  Ebel,  so  you  see  that  the 
salvation  of  the  righteous  is  of  the  Lord,  and  that  He  heareth 
the  prayer  of  His  children  that  cry  unto  Him  and  love  and 
fear  his  holy  name." 

The  cure  of  souls,  with  which  he  was  especially 
charged  in  his  new  position,  engaged  the  peculiar  care 
and  prayerful  anxiety  of  Ebel.  That  important  part  of 
the  Christian  ministry  was  almost  entirely  neglected  in 
Germany  during  the  first  quarter  of  this  century,  and 
very  imperfectly  attended  to  in  the  second.  It  was 
Ebel's  most  studious  and  earnest  endeavor  to  make  it  a 
reality.  The  great  difficulty  of  that  work  is  well  under- 
stood and  deeply  and  painfully  felt  by  all  clergymen 
truly  and  sincerely  anxious  to  turn  intercourse  with  their 
parishioners  to  spiritual  benefit.  It  is  sometimes  appa- 
rently impossible  to  establish  that  relation  ;  and  yet  as 
each  parishioner  has  a  soul  so  be  saved,  we  are  bound  to 
try,  as  far  as  we  are  able,  to  bring  that  soul  under  relig- 
ious influence.  So  felt  Ebel,  and  as  his  practice  was  ex- 
ceptional at  Konigsberg  and  singularly  successful,  it  is 
by  no  means  surprising  that  it  was  first  called  peculiar, 
and  then  cried  down  as  "  Sectirerei,''  or  separatism,  which 
word  has  an  unpleasant  ring  in  German  ears,  and  is 
meant  to  insinuate  a  species  of  hypocritical  cant.  He 
did  not  thrust  his  spiritual  ministrations  on  others,  but 
encouraged  his  parishioners  to  consult  him  about  their 


88  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

spiritual  affairs.  The  Old-Town  Church  was  served  by 
several  clergymen,  and  the  regular  weekly  services  in  the 
church  were  unusually  frequent.  There  were  three  ser- 
vices with  sermons  on  Sundays  and  Holy  days,  and  three 
mattin  services  during  the  week,  besides  the  public  pre- 
paratory services  for  the  Holy  Communion.  Under  these 
circumstances  the  influence  of  the  pulpit  was  exceptionally 
strong  in  that  particular  church,  and  the  earnest,  search- 
ing, and  faithful  utterances  of  Ebel  were  blessed  to  the 
awakening  of  many  souls  who,  until  then,  had  been  fed 
with  the  husks  of  rationalizing,  skeptical  dogmas,  on 
which  they  were  spiritually  starving.  Diestel,  his  friend 
and  colleague,  who  had  known  him  a  score  of  years,  said 
on.  this  peculiar  gift  of  Ebel  in  the  cure  of  souls  : 

"  On  the  firm  and  solid  foundation  of  the  word  of  revela- 
tion, the  treasury  of  truth  and  wisdom  to  all  seekers  of  the 
truth  and  lovers  of  God,  Ebel  has  a  wonderful  power  to  pierce 
with  the  living  word,  as  it  animates  him  through  and  through, 
the  hearts  and  minds  of  his  hearers  ;  his  tact  in  evoking  the 
hidden  germs  of  the  spiritual  life,  in  uniting  things  that  are 
like,  and  sundering  those  that  are  unlike,  is  marvellous,  and 
singles  him  out  as  eminently  skilled  in  stirring  and  develop- 
ing in  love,  wisdom  and  power  the  spiritual  life,  in  compre- 
hending '  with  all  saints  what  is  the  breadth,  and  length,  and 
depth,  and  height,  and  to  know  the  love  of  Christ.' " 

Students  and  professors  in  the  university  flocked  in 
masses  to  the  Old-Town  church  to  be  quickened  in  heart 
and  thought  by  the  ardent  zeal  and  eloquent  fervor  of 
this  veritable  Gospel  preacher.  Of  his  appearance  and 
carriage  a  parishioner  drew  the  following  sketch  : 

"  His  words  are  enhanced  by  his  engaging  and  winsome 
presence.  Noble  in  form,  strong  yet  lithe,  quick  and  grace- 
ful in  his  movements,  his  regular,  handsome  features  express 


OLD-TOWN  CHURCH.  89 

gentleness.  His  sparkling  large  blue  eyes  under  a  noble  fore- 
head surmounted  with  brilliant  raven  hair  smoothly  parted 
proclaim  at  once  ardent  self-consecration  in  the  service  of  God 
and  of  sympathetic  interest  in  his  fellow-men;  his  voice  is  well 
modulated  and  melodious,  a  fit  means  of  the  full  utterances  of 
his  love.  He  presents  the  rare  appearance  of  a  servant  of  Christ 
who  combines  a  wonderful  array  of  personal  attractions  and 
extraordinary  intellectual  endowments  with  the  purest  zeal  in 
the  service  of  God  for  the  benefit  of  his  fellow-men." 

This  is  certainly  an  attractive  portraiture,  which  might 
seem  overdrawn  if  it  stood  isolated  ;  but  here  is  another 
that  not  only  corroborates  but  intensifies  it. 

"  The  people  of  Konigsberg  are  well  acquainted  with  the 
splendor  of  the  beautiful  services  which  under  the  ministry 
of  Ebel  has  quickened  a  truly  Christian  life  in  the  largest 
congregation  assembling  in  our  largest  church.  The  impos- 
ing edifice,  the  extraordinary  richness  and  beauty  of  the 
music  rendered  with  singular  effectiveness  by  an  excellent 
chorus  supported  by  the  rich  tones  of  its  celebrated  organ, 
the  great  solemnity  and  dignity  of  the  established  ritual,  and 
above  all  things  the  vital  and  deeply  impressive  preaching  of 
the  Divine  Word  by  Ebel,  conspire  in  the  production  of  a 
wonderfully  edifying  service.  He  preaches  not  only  on  Sun- 
days and  Holy  Days  but  at  mattins  to  large  congregations 
composed  of  all  classes  of  society,  who  receive  his  message 
with  the  most  lively  interest  and  a  yearning  for  salvation 
quickening  and  developing  true  devotion  and  spiritual  ac- 
tivity ;  these  services  are  singularly  edifying  and  give  the  im- 
pression that  God  is  worshipped  here  in  spirit  and  in  truth, 
an  impression  fully  sustained  by  their  influence  on  the  private 
and  public  life  of  the  city  in  the  promotion  of  a  true  Christian 
spirit.  The  beautiful  Old-Town  Church  services,  unique  in 
their  kind,  and  universally  admired,  have  left  an  indelible 
remembrance  in  the  minds  of  all  who  have  been  edified  by 
them,  and  of  many  to  whom  they  did  not  become,  as  they 
were  designed,  a  savor  of  life  unto  life." 


90  FAITH  VICTORIOUS. 

Here  is  another  testimony  from  a  clergyman,  who 
often  attended  them  : 

"  The  hving  conviction  which  animates  Ebel,  must  needs 
be  operative  in  quickening  energy.  His  personal  love  of  God 
and  Christ,  his  absolute  unconditional  faith  in  the  declarations 
of  Holy  Scripture,  his  undoubted  assurance  that  the  promises 
of  God  are  true  and  in  course  of  fulfilment,  and  lastly  his  con- 
viction that  man  is  a  free  agent  at  liberty  to  make  choice  con- 
cerning himself  and  his  eternal  destiny,  to  elect  good  or  evil, 
life  or  death  as  a  principle  by  which  to  shape  his  course,  to 
grasp,  apply  and  confirm  it  in  his  life,  to  be  personally  active 
and  instrumental  by  incessant  vigilance  and  unremitting  labor 
in  laying  now  the  foundation  for  the  future — such  spiritual 
elements  could  not  fail  from  their  very  nature  to  produce 
powerful  and  vital  effects.  Whoever  was  susceptible  to  spir- 
itual impressions,  or  swayed  by  noble  impulses  would  be 
drawn  to  Ebel's  sermons,  and  those  who  came  to  church  to 
worship  God  and  learn  His  will,  came  not  in  vain,  but  were 
satisfied  with  the  light  and  warmth,  the  life  and  strength 
which  his  ministrations  of  the  Word  imparted.  The  solem- 
nity and  devout  attention,  the  rapt  and  profound  devotion, 
the  thoughtful  and  sympathetic  bearing  of  the  congregation 
were  in  perfect  harmony  with  the  spiritual  beauty  of  the  ser- 
vice, in  which  prayer,  music  and  sermon  presented  an  edify- 
ing unity  in  diversity.  The  services  impressed  you  with  the 
conviction  that  a  free  and  vital  spirit  underlay  and  entered 
into  all  their  component  parts  ;  and  they  promoted  in  our 
city  a  truly  Christian  spirit  in  a  congregation  thoroughly  in 
earnest  to  learn  and  to  do  the  will  of  God." 

And  yet  another  expression,  from  one  that  loved  to 
own  that  she  owed  her  spiritual  life  to  him,  may  conclude 
this  array  of  testimony  : 

"Without  admitting  it  to  myself,  until  then  I  had  never 
really  loved  to  go  to  church,  for  I  am  not  sentimentally  dis- 
posed, and  the  ordinary  preaching  did  not  attract  me.     But 


OLD-TOWN   CHURCH.  Qt 

Ebel's  preaching  gave  me  the  first  conviction  that  faith  has 
its  reasons,  that  Christianity  is  designed  to  meet  every  want, 
and  therefore  the  wants  of  thinking ;  that  it  is  the  religion  of 
consciousness,  and  therefore  of  joy  ;  that  it  wants  not  slaves, 
not  dull  and  lukewarm  confessors  (like  many  church-goers, 
who  hear  and  learn  much,  but  not  what  is  the  will  and  pur- 
pose of  God,  who  behind  His  back  mock  and  remain  idle,  and 
in  His  presence  assume  the  air  of  saintliness)  ;  .  .  .  but 
children,  volunteers,  friends,  loWng  to  know  and  cheerfully  to 
do  His  blessed  will.  His  manner  of  dwelling  on  the  voluntary 
surrender  of  the  heart  to  God  who  loved  us  first ;  to  proclaim 
in  His  name  joy,  at  once  delighting  in  Him  and  in  response 
to  His  love  ;  to  implant  and  realize  a  life  conforming  to  the 
truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus,  as  it  existed  in  the  primitive  church  ; 
that  preaching,  so  novel  and  strange  at  a  time  when  religion 
was  frivolous  and  dead,  everywhere  and  irresistibly  awakened 
the  life  of  an  energizing  faith,  ...  It  awakened  me  first 
to  rapt  attention  ...  it  gave  me  an  insight  into  the 
heart  of  God  as  that  of  a  Father,  and  taught  me,  what  before 
I  had  not  thought  of,  that  He  loves  me  ;  my  love  went  out  to 
Him  with  an  intensity  of  ardor  that  I  had  not  known  before; 
it  taught  me  that  I  had  found  my  Father,  and  it  filled  me  with 
rapturous  joy.  My  former  life  with  its  trials  and  experiences, 
as  far  as  they  had  engaged  my  imagination,  fell  into  oblivion 
with  the  sole  exception  of  the  feelings  I  had  cherished  of  God, 
and  the  thoughts  I  had  bestowed  on  Him.  The  old  spell  or 
ban  that  had  lain  on  me,  seemed  to  be  broken,  my  whole 
being  began  to  breathe  free,  in  an  element  wonderfully  con- 
genial to  its  original  necessity.  .  .  .  Whatever  was  of 
foreign  growth  dropped  away  from  me  like  a  garment,  and  I 
felt  in  this  my  first,  never  dreamt  of  reception  of  the  love  of 
God,  as  if  all  of  a  sudden  all  things  had  become  new,  within 
and  around  me,  and  I  rejoiced  in  being  the  happiest  of  the 
children  of  men."  * 


*  Ida  von  der  Groben,  "  Die  Liebezur  Wahrheit"  pp.  xxv-xxxvii. 


92  FAITH  VICTORIOUS. 

These  testimonies  suffice  to  show  what  Ebel  did  :  we 
will  now  lift  the  curtain  to  gain  an  insight  into  his  feel- 
ings. He  realized  more  than  ever  the  tremendous  re- 
sponsibilities of  his  sacred  caUing  ;  there  was  not  only 
the  most  earnest  anxiety  as  to  the  proper  selection  of 
topics,  so  that  he  might  to  the  best  of  his  ability  rightly 
divide  the  Word  of  God  ;  but  the  most  studious  and 
prayerful  endeavor  to  present  the  truth  so  as  to  meet  the 
spiritual  needs  of  his  people.  He  never  ascended  the 
pulpit  without  trepidation,  for  he  felt  that  he  was  the 
messenger  of  God,  the  ambassador  of  Christ  entreating 
men  to  be  reconciled  to  God.  He  lived  in  a  period  and 
in  a  city  singularly  destitute  of  the  knowledge  of  vital 
religion,  and  powerfully  prejudiced  against  everything 
that  savored  of  practical  piety  and  true  godliness.  Where 
such  is  the  dominant  feeling  in  a  large  and  influential 
community  the  servant  of  God  is  sorely  tried,  and  must 
be  peculiarly  watchful  to  keep  from  his  views,  and  ex- 
clude from  his  teaching  any  and  everything  that  to  his 
own  conscience  may  seem  a  betrayal  of  his  sacred  trust, 
a  temporizing  with  the  interests  of  God,  or  a  withholding 
part  of  His  counsel  from  the  people  ;  the  great  end  of 
his  ministry  is  to  bring  the  hearts  of  his  hearers  under 
the  influence  of  the  divine  Word,  and  to  save  their  souls. 
He  must  try  to  gain  their  confidence  to  win  them  over 
to  the  service  of  Christ ;  he  must  touch  their  hearts  and 
convince  their  understandings  to  enlist  them  in  the  sacra- 
mental host  of  the  saved  ;  he  must  therefore  avoid  to 
hurt  their  feelings,  or  offend  their  prejudices,  and  deal 
gently  and  sparingly  with  sensitive  and  vulnerable  points. 
Now  all  this  requires  almost  superhuman  tact,  skill,  and 
wisdom,  and  a  true  minister  of  Christ  trembles  at  the 
greatness  of  his  work  when  he  is  daily,  hourly  and  pain- 


OLD-TOWN   CHURCH. 


93 


fully  reminded  that  he  is  but  an  earthen  vessel,  swayed 
by  contending  emotions  ;  questions  that  spring  from  the 
fear  of  man  must  be  dispelled,  and  he  must  gird  himself 
for  his  work  in  pasturing  his  own  soul,  in  rising  superior 
to  every  earthly  consideration,  in  listening  only  to  the 
dictates  of  his  conscience  quickened  by  prayer  and  the 
study  of  the  Word  of  God,  to  be  bent  upon  only  one 
thing,  to  do  the  will  of  God  in  reliance  upon  divine 
direction,  regardless  of  consequences.  That  was  the 
spiritual  conflict  in  Ebel's  soul,  and  he  derived  unspeak- 
able comfort  and  encouragement  from  the  words  of  Jer- 
emiah xv.  19-21,  which  in  Luther's  version  read  thus: 
"  Therefore  thus  saith  the  Lord  :  If  thou  v/ilt  hold  thee 
to  me,  I  will  hold  to  thee,  and  thou  shalt  remain  my 
preacher ;  and  if  thou  shalt  teach  the  godly  to  separate 
themselves  from  the  wicked,  thou  shalt  be  my  teacher  : 
and  thou  shalt  not  turn  to  them,  but  they  shall  turn  to 
thee.  For  I  have  made  thee  unto  this  people  a  fenced 
brazen  wall ;  and  though  they  fight  against  thee,  they 
shall  not  prevail  against  thee  :  for  I  am  with  thee  to  save 
thee  and  to  deliver  thee,  saith  the  Lord.  And  I  will  also 
deliver  thee  out  of  the  hand  of  the  wicked,  and  I  will 
redeem  thee  out  of  the  hand  of  the  terrible."  This  pas- 
sage, so  striking  in  its  boldness,  is  a  fair  sample  of  the 
wonderful  genius  of  Luther  as  a  translator  ;  the  exact 
phraseology  is  neither  in  the  Hebrew,  the  Septuagint  nor 
the  Vulgate,  which  warrant  the  more  literal  rendering  of 
the  Authorized  Version,  but  that  his  version  seizes  the 
sense  and  expresses  it  in  wonderfully  clear  language,  not 
uncolored  by  his  own  personal  experience,  none  can  deny: 
and  the  words  must  have  come  home  with  irresistible 
force  to  Ebel  in  the  courageous  warfare  he  waged  in  the 
service  of  God  in  the  midst  of  an  irreligious  and  gain- 


94  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

saying  people.  He  felt  when  he  stood  in  the  Old-Town 
pulpit  that  he  must  take  the  offensive  against  the  world, 
that  his  weapon  must  be  the  sword  of  the  Spirit,  the 
Word  of  God,  and  he  knew  the  temper  of  the  times  too 
well  to  apply  the  unction  to  his  soul  that  the  world 
would  submit  to  his  entreaties  ;  he  knew  that  his  every 
position  w^ould  be  assailed,  that  he  would  have  to  en- 
counter the  most  positive  and  bitter  antagonism,  and  that 
it  became  him  to  be  thoroughly  equipped  for  the  seem- 
ingly unequal  conflict.  We  are  told  that  he  was  wont  to 
fortify  himself,  as  he  ascended  the  pulpit  in  that  try- 
ing period  of  his  ministry,  repeating  to  himself  some 
sentiment  of  encouragement  embodied  in  favorite  hymns, 
especially  the  stanza  : 

Hilf  selbst  thirch  alle  Schwierigkeit, 
Uiid  aiich  durch  alle  Schwachen^ 

hi  gldtibiger  Ergebenheit, 
hi  Sieg  tmd  Segeii  brechen. 

In  his  own  words,  expressed  many  years  later,  Ebel 
recognized  his  peculiar  mission  : 

"To  appeal  to  the  will  and  excite  it  to  personal  liberty,  so 
that  by  its  own  deliberate  decision  men  might  show  grati- 
tude for  the  love  of  God  and  evince  it  in  their  lives  made  con- 
formable to  God's.  I  regard  it  as  the  great  work  of  my  life 
to  urge  the  children  of  God  to  voluntary  self-consecration  in 
the  pursuit  of  goodness  ;  this  I  deem  to  have  been  especially 
committed  to  my  charge,  my  pecuhar  mission  to  this  genera- 
tion, that  the  glorious  liberty  of  the  children  of  God,  to  wit : 
their  full  status  of  adopdon,  may  soon  become  manifest  on 
earth  (even  as  St.  Paul  testifies — Rom.  viii.  19,  23),  which  is 
intimately  connected  with  deliverance  from  the  bondage  of 
corruption,  from  bodily  tribulation,  for  which  the  creature 
and  our  sorely-plagued  race  is  yearning.     But  that  deliver- 


OLD-TOWN   CHURCH.  95 

ance,  that  redemption  of  our  body  involves  the  condition  of 
our  voluntary  participation  in  the  work  of  our  salvation,  the 
condition  of  grateful  return  love  for  mercies  received,  for,  as 
I  apprehend  the  matter  in  virtue  of  the  light  vouchsafed  to 
me,  man  is  not  a  machine,  solely  left  to  be  operated  upon  by 
God  (for  that  would  make  God  the  author  of  sin  and  evil), 
but  an  independent  agent,  of  his  own  free  will  to  choose  the 
good  and  refuse  the  evil,  to  accept,  appropriate,  and  apply 
the  means  of  grace  which  God  offers  him,  and  on  the  proper 
use  off  which  depends  his  salvation,  which  God  has  placed  in 
his  own  hand.  What  is  growth  in  grace  unless  it  be  growth 
to  independence,  to  free,  personal  decision  in  the  adoption 
and  practice  of  good  ?  And  wherever  this  growth  is  recog- 
nized as  the  original  motive-spring  of  the  development  of 
our  spiritual  life,  the  crouching,  slavish  mien  and  bearing 
of  fear  cannot  exist ;  man,  conscious  of  the  great  end  of  his 
existence,  rejoices  in  the  knowledge  that  he  is  called  upon  to 
co-operate  with  God,  and  though  his  success  may  not  keep  even 
pace  with  his  endeavor,  though  resistance  struggle  with  suc- 
cess, a  good  man,  in  spite  of  it,  joyously  lifts  up  head  and  eye, 
and  his  pure  good  will  is  owned  in  heaven,  even  as  it  re- 
wards him  on  earth." 


As  I  understand  Ebel,  he  points  out  that  our  moral 
hberty  consists  m  the  united  power  of  thinking  and  rea- 
soning, and  of  choosing  and  acting  upon  such  thinking 
and  reasoning  ;  so  that  the  clearer  our  thought  and  con- 
ception is  of  what  is  fit  and  right,  and  the  more  constantly 
our  choice  is  determined  by  it,  the  more  nearly  we  rise 
to  the  highest  acts  and  exercises  of  this  liberty.  The 
fact  that  God  enjoins  any  commandment  whatsoever  im- 
plies the  ability  of  man  to  do  or  not  to  do  it.  As  the 
church  of  the  Laodiceans  (Rev.  iii.  14-20)  was  exhorted 
to  open  the  door  at  the  Lord's  bidding  that  He  might 
come  in  and  sup  with  them  (cf.  St.  Luke  xiv.  16-24)  so 


96  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

we  must  make  the  necessary  preparation,  and  put  on 
the  wedding-garment  His  love  suppHes  (St.  Matth.  xxii. 
1-14). 

Ebel's  theology  as  reflected  in  his  sermons  is  not  of  a 
particular  school  or  stripe,  but  strictly  biblical  and 
therefore  edifying.  His  constant  aim  was  to  win  friends 
for  Jesus,  true  friends  bearing  much  fruit,  and  he  urged 
and  entreated  men  to  begin  the  blessedness  of  their 
friendship  this  side  the  grave,  with  such  warmth  and 
earnestrffess  that  one  day  one  of  his  hearers  on  leaving 
the  church  exlaimed  :  "  He  would  in  his  love  take  men 
to  heaven  by  force,  if  he  could  have  his  own  will ;  but 
it  cannot  be  done  that  way,  and  he  must  leave  many 
behind." 

His  preaching  was  eminently  practical,  the  outcome  of 
his  own  spiritual  experience,  and  touched  in  every  turn 
and  thought  the  spiritual  wants  of  his  hearers,  and  that 
made  it  acceptable  to  all  classes  and  conditions  of  men, 
to  the  educated  and  the  illiterate.  Strangers  were  so  much 
struck  and  touched  to  the  quick  by  his  presentation  of  the 
truth  that  they  were  eager  to  seek  his  personal  acquaint- 
ance, or  where  that  was  impracticable,  to  thank  him  in 
letters^  for  the  benefit  they  had  received.  The  influence 
and  effects  of  his  sermons  were  remarkable,  and  he  rarely 
preached  without  awakening  to  life  some  soul  or  another. 
His  faith  was  strong  and  childlike,  and  he  relied  impli- 
citly on  what  may  be  called  the  inspiration  of  the  mo- 
ment for  the  choice  of  a  topic  or  its  treatment.  At  least 
it  happened  not  rarely  that  he  delivered  a  sermon  alto- 
gether different  from  the  tenor  of  his  preparation.  It 
has  already  been  stated  that  he  always  preached  ex  capite  j 
on  several  occasions  he  had  actually  read  the  text,  and 
under  an  irresistible  impulse  preached  another  sermon 


OLD-TOWN   CHURCH. 


97 


than  that  he  had  prepared,  and  learned  years  after  that 
on  those  particular  occasions,  to  his  great  joy,  persons  of 
whom  he  knew  absolutely  nothing  at  the  time,  ascribed 
the  turning  point  in  their  spiritual  life  to  those  very  ser- 
mons. In  the  years  1818  and  1822,  when  very  large 
numbers  were  religiously  influenced  by  him,  his  minis- 
try was  exceptionally  blessed. 

Baron  von  Heyking,  in  his  manuscript  notices  of  Ebel's 
life,  mentions  from  personal  knowledge  the  case  of  several 
persons  on  whom  a  discourse  on  the  words  ''  My  son, 
give  me  thy  heart,"  produced  so  powerful  an  impression 
that  it  decided  their  religious  life,  which  stood  the  test  of 
temptation.  Another  sermon  on  the  topic  :  "  The  Great 
Change  wrought  in  us  by  the  Holy  Spirit "  (given  in 
Appendix  A),  had  an  extraordinary  influence  on  many 
minds,  stirring  their  inmost  soul  in  earnest  longing  for 
that  blessed  change  ;  the  Spirit  of  God  rested  upon  him, 
"  and  the  Lord  added  to  the  church  daily  such  as  should 
be  saved."  In  his  ministry  was  fulfilled  the  prophetic 
announcement  that  the  hearts  of  the  fathers  were  turned 
to  the  children,  and  also  the  hearts  of  the  children  to 
the  fathers  ;  its  influence  was  so  great  and  wide-spread 
at  this  time  that  there  was  hardly  a  Christian  family 
throughout  the  province,  that  did  not  directly  or  indirect- 
ly share  its  spiritual  blessing. 

And  what  was  the  magnetism  of  those  sermons  and  of 
the  man  felt  everywhere,  which  attracted  even  to  the 
mattins  (held  at  6  a.m.)  professors,  civil  and  military 
officers,  students,  etc.,  some  of  whom  so  deeply  interested 
in  what  they  heard,  that  they  wrote  down  the  sermons, 
copied  and  circulated  them  among  friends  at  a  great 
distance  ?  In  what  consisted  their  vitalizing  power  ?  I 
allow  his  friend  Heyking  to  answer  these  questions. 
5 


98  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

"  Ebel  was  free  from  all  one-sidedness  in  thought  and 
feeling,  but  all  life,  and  the  spiritual  element  dominated 
in  him,  so  that  his  sermons  were  thoughts  drawn  from 
the  Word  of  God,  quickened  by  his  own  experience 
and  a  keen  knowledge  of  the  hearts  of  men,  not  transient 
ebullitions  of  feeling,  and  yet  they  were  so  warm,  earnest 
and  manifold  that  they  were  sure  to  touch  all  who  felt 
the  need  of  just  that  kind  of  stimulus  to  quicken  their 
spiritual  life.  He  did  not  deal  out  things  by  halves,  but 
teaching  the  whole  truth  in  the  conversion  of  a  soul  to 
God  and  cutting  off  all  excuses,  his  words  entered  into 
every  receptive  soil.  He  did  not  separate  sanctifi cation 
from  reconciliation  ;  if  he  extolled  the  mercy  of  God  pity- 
ing man  in  his  misery  and  providing  the  means  of  his  salva- 
tion, he  exhorted  men  to  use  their  liberty  in  order  to  be- 
come free  indeed.  But  even  whole  truths,  free  from 
doctrinal  objection  may  be  so  presented  that  they  re- 
semble painted  plants  without  growth  and  life  ;  Ebel's 
words  were  living  plants ;  life  only  can  gender  life^,  and 
if  life  and  truth  had  not  dwelt  in  them,  and  been 
infused  into  them*  from  his  own  heart  and  soul,  they 
would  have  fallen,  like  many  other  sensible  words  uttered 
or  written,  dead  upon  the  ears  and  souls  of  his  hearers  ; 
but  they  were  powerful  and  operative,  because  he  was 
true,  and  stood  in  the  truth.  I  remember  the  conversa- 
tion of  two  of  my  legal  friends,  in  which  the  one  alleged 
that  preachers  did  not  believe  what  they  taught,  and  the 
other  replied  that  while  he  shared  his  opinion  in  gen- 
eral, he  knew  one  exception,  and  that  was  Ebel,  who  be- 
lieved what  he  taught.  Love  was  another  element  of  his 
sermons,  not  of  the  weak  sort,  but  emitting  flames  when 
he  dwelt  on  the  self-deception  of  many  who  think  that 
they  love    and  honor  Christ  and  are  sure  of  salvation, 


OLD-TOWN   CHURCH.  99 

when  with  trifling  temerity  they  degrade  Him  into  a 
servant  of  sin.  There  were  those  who  held  that  repent- 
ance had  nothing  to  do  with  Christianity,  and  mocked  at 
his  discourses  as  "penitential  sermons."  He  did  preach 
repentance,  but  repentance  unto  life,  not  unto  death  ;  he 
reasoned  that  God  is  Love,  and  has  created  us  to  happi- 
ness and  joy — to  joy  in  a  holy  spirit,  and  that  He  does 
not  wish  us  to  perish  either  in  melancholy  and  despair, 
or  in  voluptuousness ;  and  that  Christianity  is  a  religion 
of  joy,  educating  us  to  the  noblest  enjoyments  ;  thus  he 
taught  it,  and  thus  he  lived  it." 

In  Appendix  A  are  produced  several  of  the  most  cele- 
brated of  Ebel's  sermons  ;  they  are  noble  utterances 
of  noble  thoughts,  thoroughly  biblical  throughout,  and 
homiletical  productions  cast  in  the  traditional  mould  cur- 
rent in  Germany  ;  in  point  of  language,  rhetorical  finish, 
felicitous  and  ready  application,  they  may  be  instanced 
as  pattern  sermons,  elevating  and  edifying  to  Christian 
readers  everywhere,  clerical  or  lay.  Their  perusal,  for 
which  the  glowing  language  of  Baron  Heyking  and  of  so 
many  other  most  competent  witnesses  is  almost  sure  to 
whet  the  appetite  of  the  reader,  may  not  come  up  to  his 
expectations ;  and  it  is  impossible  that  it  can.  The 
printed  sermons  are  not  the  sermons  which  electrified 
his  audience  ;  they  give  the  words  he  wrote  down  in  his 
study  before  and  after  they  were  preached,  but  they  are 
minus  his  delivery,  the  charm  and  witchery  of  his  elo- 
quent, musical  voice,  of  his  eagle  glance,  of  his  dignified 
presence,  of  the  vital  and  vitalizing  energy  which  went 
out  from  the  heart  and  soul  of  the  preacher  into  the 
heart  and  soul  of  his  hearers.  On  this  point  all  that 
ever  heard  Ebel  are  agreed  ;  and  we  must  bear  it  in 
mind  in  perusing  these  sermons.     They  are  noble  and 


lOO  FAITH    VICTORIOUS. 

worthy  mementos  of  a  Christian  hero,  but  they  are  not, 
and  cannot  he,  the  sermons  which  shook  Konigsberg  and 
the  entire  province,  and  roused  the  spiritually  dead  from 
the  sleep  of  death  into  life,  and  quickened  that  life  into 
enthusiastfc  self-consecration  to  the  service  of  Christ ; 
for  that  it  were  necessary  to  bring  back  the  Christian 
victor  from  the  paradise  of  God. 

Ebel  attached  the  utmost  value  to  the  early  morning 
services,  which  were  unspeakably  precious  to  him.  On 
festivals  they  were  held  at  six  o'clock,  on  week-days  at 
seven  ;  to  attend  them  necessarily  involved  self-denial 
and  betokened  profound  religious  feeling,  and  before  his 
time  they  had  been  deserted.  Their  distinctive  feature 
was  their  high  range  of  thought  and  deep,  soul-searching 
discipline,  designed  to  meet  the  spiritual  wants  of  earnest 
seekers  and  matured  Christians.*  The  Monday  service 
was  specially  devoted  to  the  study  of  the  Bible,  and  he 
called  his  expositions  "  Glances  at  the  Bible."  In  the 
course  of  his  long  ministry  at  the  Old-Town  Church  he 
traversed  in  that  way  the  whole  field  of  the  Word  of  God  ; 
until  1827  the  contents  of  the  Old  Testament,  and  from 
that  period  to  the  close  of  his  official  career  in  1835  that 
of  the  New  Testament.  It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that 
that  most  valuable  and  characteristic  series  of  exposi- 
tions has  not  been  permanently  preserved  in  print. 

His  heart  was  aglow  with  love  for  the  young,  in  whom 
he  took  the  profoundest  interest ;  to  sow  in  their  pure, 
uncontaminated  hearts  the  good  seed  of  the  divine  truths 
was  his  favorite  employment,  and  engaged  his  warmest 
prayers  and  ceaseless  thought.  He  took  especial  pains 
with  candidates  for  confirmation.     It  may  be  necessary 

*  See  ' '  A  Paradox  "  Appendix  A. 


OLD-TOWN  CHURCH.  lOI 

to  State,  for  the  benefit  of  those  not  famiUar  with  that 
discipUne  of  Church  instruction  in  Germany,  that  the 
clergy  are  bound  to  administer  confirmation  annually  to 
the  youth  of  the  parish,  and  the  proper  age,  the  years  of 
discretion  as  we  call  it,  is  generally  the  completion  of  the 
fourteenth  year  ;  it  is  also  proper  to  add  that  the  Church 
in  Germany  is  an  establishment  not  only  connected  with 
the  State,  but  under  State  control,  so  that  the  position  of 
a  parish  minister  is  invested  with  a  degree  of  authority 
unknown  under  voluntary  systems.  In  the  matter  of 
confirmation,  e.  g.,  a  search  for  candidates,  or  special 
effort  to  induce  their  attendance  at  lectures  or  courses  of 
instruction,  does  not  devolve  upon  a  Lutheran  minister 
in  Germany  ;  the  whole  parish  youth,  duly  registered  in 
books  kept  for  the  purpose,  are  required  to  attend,  and 
do  so  as  a  matter  of  course.  This  accounts  for  the  large 
number  of  catechumens,  and  for  the  great  opportunity 
given  to  a  truly  devout  and  earnest  minister  to  bring  per- 
sonal influence  to  bear  on  the  formation  of  the  character, 
grounding  in  the  faith,  and  the  growth  of  Christian  nur- 
ture and  life  of  the  youthful  members  of  his  flock.  Ebel 
turned  that  golden  opportunity  to  the  best  advantage  of 
his  catechumens,  in  whom  he  saw  the  hope  of  the  Church. 
He  divided  them  into  three  classes,  representing  their 
grades  of  culture  and  intellectual  capacity  ;  there  was  a 
class  of  weak  ones,  a  class  of  average  or  middle  ability, 
and  a  class  of  able  ones  ;  he  gave  two  or  three  hours  a 
week  to  each  class  ;  the  instruction  on  a  particular  day 
lasted  three  hours  ;  in  the  first  he  would  have  the  weak 
ones  by  themselves,  in  the  second  the  weak  with  those  of 
medium  capacity,  and  in  the  third  these  with  the  most 
advanced,  while  the  weak  ones  were  required  to  be  pres- 
ent as  hearers  ;  in  addition  to  this  he  met  the  most  able 


102  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

by  themselves  several  times  a  week.  The  advantages  of 
such  a  system,  where  it  can  be  introduced  at  all,  are 
manifest.  The  w^eak  by  themselves  are  prepared  for 
higher  instruction  each  time  they  meet ;  the  judicious 
and  kind  directions  of  their  spiritual  guide  encourage 
and  qualify  them  for  participation  in  the  catechetical 
exercises  designed  for  all,  while  that  considerate  and 
careful  preparation  shields  them  from  hurtful  reflections 
by  their  more  able  and  gifted  companions,  to  which 
thoughtless  answers,  or  answers  betraying  their  ignorance, 
would  naturally  give  rise.  The  course  of  instruction  was 
based  on  passages  of  Scripture,  which,  as  well  as  appro- 
priate hymns,  were  required  to  be  committed ;  the  lessons 
they  embodied  were  duly  explained  and  made  to  bear  on 
religious  and  practical  duties  of  daily  life,  particular  pains 
being  taken  to  induce  vigilance,  thoughtfulness,  self- 
examination,  and,  above  all  things,  practice.  His  method 
attracted  attention,  and  was  thus  noticed  in  print  : 

^'Ebel's  instruction  of  candidates  for  confirmation  was 
based  on  vital  reciprocity.  Even  the  rudest  were  unable  to 
resist  the  spirit  which  influenced  them  ;  the  disobedient  be- 
came obedient,  the  dull  grew  vivacious  and  communicative, 
the  triflers  became  serious,  and  the  careless  diligent.  He 
did  not  turn  out  only  awakened  youth,  but  young  men  and 
maidens  fully  prepared  with  the  grov/th  of  their  self-con- 
sciousness to  understand  the  end  of  their  existence,  and  to 
consecrate  themselves  in  the  first  ardor  of  their  love  to  the 
service  of  God,  prepared  for  the  discharge  of  their  duty  to 
God  and  to  man.  The  expression  of  this  kind  of  instruction 
on  the  day  of  confirmation  was  very  striking.  The  catechu- 
mens did  not  shed  tears  originating  mostly  in  an  impulse  of 
momentary  emotion,  and  apt  to  dry  forever  after  the  excite- 
ment of  the  hour ;  but  they  exhibited  a  free,  conscious,  and 
intelligent  statement,  plainly  showing  that  their  ideas  were 


OLD-TOWN   CHURCH.  IO3 

clear  and  distinct,  that  they  were  held  firmly  and  truly, 
that  they  had  not  merely  learned  what  they  uttered,  but  un- 
derstood and  believed  it." 

That  the  children  were  devotedly  and  affectionately 
attached  to  their  good  pastor  needs  no  particular  men- 
tion, but  it  was  remarkable  that  children  belonging  else- 
where, and  parents  residing  at  a  great  distance  coveted 
the  privilege  for  their  children  to  come  into  personal  re- 
lations with  one  so  singularly  gifted  to  excite  and  sustain 
the  love  of  the  truth,  and  to  bless  them  with  the  choicest 
and  best  of  heaven's  gifts. 

As  at  Hermsdorf,  so  at  Konigsberg,  Ebel's  relations  to 
his  catechumens  did  not  end  with  their  confirmation  ;  as 
they  were  sure  of  his  interest  and  affection  for  them,  so 
he  encouraged  them  to  maintain  social  intercourse  with 
him,  and  set  apart  special  days  for  conferring  with  them 
on  whatever  might  be  of  interest  to  them,  but  espe- 
cially on  their  own  personal  relations  to  God  and  the 
Saviour. 

He  was  the  pastor  on  all  occasions  of  a  joyous  or  of 
an  afflictive  character.  At  baptisms  and  weddings,  the 
visitation  of  the  sick  and  at  funerals,  he  strove  to  let  his 
speech  be  always  seasoned  with  salt,  and  in  his  pastoral 
visits,  which  the  great  extent  of  the  parish  and  its  multi- 
farious duties  rendered  only  occasionally  practicable,  he 
would  invariably  dwell  on  religious  and  spiritual  themes. 
Prayer-meetings  and  similar  gatherings  he  did  not  en- 
courage, deeming  them  of  doubtful  spiritual  value,  and 
not  without  danger.  He  would  not  interfere  with  them 
when  they  had  been  introduced  and  were  productive  of 
good,  and  considered  them  beneficial  in  rural  districts, 
where  great  distance  from  the  parish  church  seemed  to 
need  some  such  agency,  without  which  country  people 


104  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

might  otherwise  grow  wholly  estranged  from  religious  in- 
fluence ;  but  he  held  it  unwise  to  recommend  them  as 
means  of  conversion,  chiefly  because  of  their  dangerous 
tendency  to  check  independent  action  and  interfere  with 
the  development  of  personal  relationship  to  the  Saviour, 
which  he  thought  the  peculiar  vocation  and  privilege  of 
a  Christian  {Tages-Aftbruch,  p.  203,  sq.  and  passwi). 

He  had  a  strong  dislike  of  shams  of  every  kind  and 
form,  and  regarded  private  gatherings  and  conventicles 
as  shams,  so  that  persons  who  had  a  fondness  for  them 
did  not  feel  attracted  to  Ebel,  whose  turn  was  eminently 
practical,  and  whose  sole  endeavor  in  social  intercourse 
was  to  give  it  an  ennobling  and  refining  direction  in  the 
practice  of  virtue  and  holiness. 

"  If  we  know  Him,  the  heart  revels  in  the  peace  which  pass- 
eth  all  understanding,  the  soul  breathes  in  an  atmosphere  of 
love,  and  the  mind,  sober  and  watchful  in  prayer,  reflects  in 
sunny  clearness  that  wisdom  from  above  which  'is  first  pure, 
then  peaceable,  gentle,  and  easy  to  be  entreated,  full  of  mercy 
and  good  fruits,  without  partiality  and  without  hypocrisy.' 
On  that  account  cheerfulness  and  piety  go  hand  in  hand,  and 
are  necessarily  united  ;  without  cheerfulness  you  cannot  have 
true  piety,  and  without  piety  you  cannot  be  truly  cheerful. 
.  .  .  It  is  very  sad  that  men  confound  the  unction  of  the 
spiritual  life  with  the  sullen  and  severe  seriousness  censured 
already  in  the  Old  Testament,  and  wholly  incompatible  with 
the  temper  of  those  who  profess  to  be  His  followers,  who  said: 
'  But  thou  when  thou  fastest  anoint  thine  head  and  wash  thy 
face,  that  thou  appear  not  unto  men  to  fast,'  and  justified  the 
conduct  of  the  disciples,  saying,  '  Can  the  children  of  the  bride- 
chamber  mourn  as  long  as  the  bridegroom  is  with  them  ? 
but  the  days  will  come  when  the  bridegroom  shall  be  taken 
from  them,  and  then  shall  they  fast.'  These  words  may  serve 
us  likewise  as  a  standard  of  joy  and  sorrow,  for,  truly,  what 


OLD-TOWN  CHURCH.  IO5 

were  heaven  without  a  friend,  and  what  were  earth  without 
one  ?  So,  then,  everything  depends  upon  this,  that  we  have 
or  have  not  that  Friend.  .  .  It  should  be  our  highest  aim 
to  strive  after  joy  in  the  Lord,  '  for  the  joy  of  the  Lord  is  our 
strength'  (Neh.  viii.  10).  But  I  do  not  mean  that  sentimental 
form  which  causes  men  to  talk  of  their  dear  Lord  who  have 
never  felt  His  righteousness  and  strength  in  their  own  hearts. 
There  is,  nevertheless,  a  consecration  in  which  a  look  at  once 
noble  and  gentle,  a  speech  mighty  and  gracious,  like  the  lamb 
and  the  lion  in  harmony  commingle.  But  it  cannot  be  imi- 
tated or  put  on;  it  must  spring  into  bloom  from  health 
within.  And  as  all  nature  re-echoes  joy  and  delight,  provided 
it  continue  free  from  human  desecration,  so  man  is  destined 
to  regain  his  original  consecration,  to  re-awake  in  the  image 
of  God  that  he  may  truly  and  eternally  rejoice." 

And  yet  in  another  place  : 

"  That  is  not  to  worship  God  acceptably  '  for  a  man  to  bow 
down  his  head  as  a  bulrush,'  as  says  the  prophet  (Is.  Iviii. 
5).  To  what  purpose  are  these  seemingly  devout  attitudes  ? 
Let  us  avoid  singularity  of  manner,  speech,  and  conduct,  but 
•  with  well-doing  put  to  silence  the  ignorance  of  foolish  men  ' 
(i  Pet.  ii.  15)  '  that  they  may  be  ashamed  that  falsely  accuse 
us' {Id,  ni.  16).  Let  every  man  look  straight  before  him  in 
simplicity;  let  him  do  what  belongs  to  his  vocation  and  min- 
istry, cheerfully,  honestly,  and  truly,  without  murmuring  or 
doubt,  for  he  that  is  faithful  in  that  which  is  least  is  faithful 
also  in  much  (St.  Luke  xvi.  10),  provided  that  in  everything 
there  appear  in  an  innocent  life  the  reflection  of  pure  nobility 
of  soul." 

The  principles  to  which  Ebel  reduces  the  whole  sub- 
ject are  stated  thus  : 

"  Concerning  joy  and  pleasure  we  say  that  God  permits 
them  ;  you  know  that,  but  you  hardly  know  the  full  extent  to 
which  he  permits  them.     Every  endowment  of  our  physical 


Io6  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

and  spiritual  nature  is  capable  of  pleasure;  the  exertion  of 
each  and  all  may  conduce  to  pleasure,  so  the  name  of  pleas- 
ure is  legion.  But  in  the  pursuit  of  pleasure  we  must  take 
care  that  we  neglect  no  duty  to  the  detriment  of  others,  and 
understand  our  interest  and  profit.  For  the  faculties  of 
sense,  the  pleasure  of  motion  even  under  the  accompaniment 
of  sound,  the  pleasures  of  taste  and  smell  are  low  enjoyments; 
the  pleasures  of  the  ear  and  the  eye  are  somewhat  nobler, 
especially  where  their  exercise  is  associated  with  the  imagin- 
ation and  other  faculties  of  the  soul.  But  enjoyment  be- 
comes higher  and  more  exalted  when  the  noblest  activity  of 
the  senses  effects  a  union  with  all  the  powers  of  the  soul, 
especially  the  highest.  For  the  activity  of  the  understanding 
and  the  contemplations  of  reason  are  essentially  joyful, 
though  they  should  be  misused  for  mere  pastime  or  amuse- 
ment; but  if  they  bear  their  part  in  one  grand  harmonious 
whole,  if  heart  and  will  assuring  us  without  contradiction  of 
our  adoption  and  heavenly  nobility  in  every  act  of  self-con- 
quest, in  every  pure  and  voluntary  act  of  love — unite  with  it, 
and  open  the  noblest  part  of  our  nature  to  refresh  and  de- 
light us — who  may  then  portray  the  ecstasy  of  joy  that  fills 
our  being,  and  who  would  not  desire  that  all  men  might 
soon  attain  this  understanding  in  order  to  know  the  true  na- 
ture of  true  joy." 


CHAPTER   V. 

SCHONHERR     AND     FALSE     FRIENDS. 

The  characterization  of  Ebel's  ministry  at  the  Old- 
Town  Church  may  be  appropriately  interrupted  to  make 
room  for  an  important  episode  belonging  to  the  year 
1819,  which  culminated  in  his  separation  from  Schon- 
herr. 

What  Ebel  owed  to  him,  and  how  gratefully  he  ac- 
knowledged the  obligation,  has  already  been  stated  ;  the 
points  on  which  they  agreed  have  also  been  pointed  out ; 
those  on  which  they  differed  have  now  to  be  narrated. 

Their  differences  sprang  from  a  different  disposition. 
Schonherr  was  dogmatical,  positive,  impatient  of  con- 
tradiction, self-willed  and  self-righteous  ;  Ebel  was  re- 
ceptive, tender-hearted,  strong-minded,  clear,  amiable, 
yielding  and  humble.  In  all  matters  relating  to  personal 
inconvenience,  involving  self-denial,  or  the  surrender  of 
opinion  without  the  sacrifice  of  principle,  he  would  ex- 
hibit the  most  engaging  and  winsome  disposition ;  but  in 
things  pertaining  to  God,  in  matters  of  principle  and 
conscience,  whether  they  bore  on  doctrine  or  practice, 
he  knew  no  compromise  or  submission  ;  his  convictions, 
based  on  Holy  Scripture  and  not  adopted  in  formulas  of 
party,  had  so  thoroughly  interpenetrated  the  whole  texture 
of  his  nature,  that  they  dominated  in  all  his  relations, 

107 


I08  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

and  stamped  them  with  the  impress  of  the  purest  Chris- 
tianity ;  in  everything  that  departed  from  the  precepts 
of  Christ,  conflicted  with  Christian  doctrine,  or  was  op- 
posed to  the  highest  ends  of  rehgion,  his  burning  zeal 
for  the  honor  of  God  and  his  quick,  deep-searching,  pene- 
trating conscience  would  be  the  sole  arbiter  of  choice, 
and  compel  his  course.  Not  that  he  was  hasty,  for  he  was 
calm,  cautious  and  deliberate  ;  or  obstinate,  for  he  was 
amiable  ;  or  arbitrary,  for  he  was  fair  ;  no,  conviction 
and  a  high  sense  of  duty  regulated  his  actions,  and  caused 
him  to  use  all  the  weapons  with  which  his  tender,  loving 
heart,  his  singularly  clear  mind  and  natural  tact  furnished 
him,  to  overcome  opposition,  and  to  correct  error ;  but 
the  surrender  of  conviction  he  knew  not  and  coidd  not 
know. 

It  had  not  escaped  his  discriminating  judgment  that 
there  was  an  element  in  Schonherr's  views,  which  savoured 
of  self,  and  not  of  God  ;  which  glaringly  contradicted 
the  spirit  and  precepts  of  Christ  and  His  Apostles.  The 
love  of  Christ  was  to  Ebel  the  secret  spring  of  the 
Christian  life,  and  faith  in  His  atonement  the  funda- 
mental condition  of  the  spiritual  life.*     Schonherr,  on 

*  "  Such  a  view  must  not,  and  cannot  make  us  proud  ;  the  rather, 
he  that  knows  that  he  is  planted  by  God  as  a  tree  of  righteousness 
to  the  praise  of  God,  knows  likewise  that  it  is  only  a  blessed  cotn- 
mencement,  deeply  convinced  that  he  must  grow  in  all  things,  and 
seek  in  prayer  the  aid  of  Him  who  hath  called  him  to  a  holy  life, 
and  hath  forgiven  his  sins,  entreating  Him  to  grant  him  according  to 
the  riches  of  His  glory  to  be  strengthened  with  might  by  His  spirit 
in  the  inner  man  (Eph.  iii.  i6)  and  to  be  zealous  of  good  works 
(Tit.  ii.  14).  For  our  sense  of  obligation  is  determined  by  the 
measure  of  the  grace  we  have  received,  as  the  Lord  Himself 
declares  it  in  St.  Luke  vii.  36-48,  and  this  is  really  the  solution  of 
the  great  mystery  of  our  salvation.    There  is  only  one  motive  power 


SCHONHERR  AND   FALSE   FRIENDS.  IO9 

the  Other  hand,  indulged  in  expressions  which  seemed 
to  lessen  the  person  of  the  Saviour  and  His  atonement ; 
not  that  he  denied  their  objective  realit}^  or  in  any  way- 
impugned  it  ;  but  he  had  somehow  got  astray  in  their 
bearing  on  practice,  and  labored  under  the  hallucination 
that  in  some  way  he  was  an  exception  to  the  general 
rule,  and  stood  in  peculiar  relations  to  the  Father.  His 
friends,  and  among  them  Ebel,  were  shocked  at  this  pre- 
tension,   and   tried  to  reason  with  him,   without  avail. 

of  the  moral  life  which  strikes  deep  and  incisively  into  our  being, 
just  as  there  is  only  one  vital  power  which  prompts  our  activity,  and 
that  power  is  love  (for  he  that  has  ceased  to  love  anything,  thereby 
intimates  his  desire  to  cease  living),  and  this  power  (for  it  is  a 
power  that  affects  the  whole  of  our  being,  our  will)  had  to  be  set  in 
motion,  in  order  to  effect  the  permanent  cure  of  the  degenerated 
race  from  all  its  ailings,  and  to  renovate  and  restore  it  to  its  origi- 
nal purity  and  rights.  But  only  those  do  experience  within  them- 
selves the  wholesome  effects  of  that  power,  who  have  come  to  their 
senses  and  have  become  conscious  enough  to  be  convinced  of  their 
sinfulness,  and  humble  enough  painfully  and  profoundly  to  feel  it. 
And  that  which  neither  the  mandate  of  duty  from  within  with  its 
*  thou  shalt,'  was  unable  to  achieve,  nor  the  allurements  of  profit, 
nor  the  threat  of  punishment,  nor  the  habit  of  legal  observance — for 
all  were  unavailing  to  raise  man  from  the  abysmal  depths  of  his 
spiritual  misery — that  is  accomplished  by  actual  love,  which  from 
the  cross  proclaims  in  tender  accents  :  '  Thy  sins  are  forgiven 
thee,'  and  prompts  the  resolution  :  'Let  us  love  Him,  for  He 
hath  loved  us  first.'  '  Beloved,  if  God  so  loved  us,  we  ought  also 
to  love  one  another.'  And  lest  in  his  difficult  course  we  grow 
weary  the  same  love  revives  our  confidence,  thus  :  *  He  that  spared 
not  his  own  Son,  but  delivered  Him  up  for  us  all,  how  shall  He 
not  with  Him  also  freely  give  us  all  things  ? '  (Rom.  viii.  32). 
'  For  I  am  not  ashamed  of  the  Gospel  of  Christ ;  ....  for 
therein  is  the  righteousness  of  God  revealed  from  faith  to  faith  ;  as 
it  is  written.  The  just  shall  live  by  faith'  (ib.  i.  16,  17)."  Tages 
Anbruch,  pp.  113-115. 


no  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

There  was  this  essential  and  radical  difference  in  their 
views.  Schonherr  held  that  the  knowledge  of  the  truth- 
was  sufficient  to  accomplish  the  salvation  of  the  world  ; 
Ebel  insisted  that  knowledge,  though  essential,  did  in  it- 
self not  meet  the  exigencies  of  the  case,  and  needed  to 
be  applied  to  practice,  and  in  that  application  the  help 
of  divine  grace.  An  all-important  distinction,  so  clear 
and  self-evident  that  its  non-acceptance  by  so  profound 
a  thinker  as  Schonherr  remains  a  psychological  riddle. 
But  that  is  exactly  how  the  case  stood,  when  a  circum- 
stance arose  which  needed  positive  action. 

A  certain  Dr.  Sachs,  a  Jew,  a  physician,  and  after- 
wards a  professor  in  the  University  of  Konigsberg,  had 
attended  the  ministry  of  Ebel,  and  desired  him  to  in- 
struct him  in  the  principles  of  Christianity.  Sachs, 
though  a  man  of  unusual  intellectual  ability,  was  essen- 
tially bad  as  to  morals  ;  he  was  carnally-minded,  dissolute, 
selfish,  and  cunning.  So  the  event  proved  him,  and  as 
the  record  of  his  immorality  has  been  established  by 
judicial  inquiry,  no  end  of  truth  or  justice  could  be 
furthered  by  withholding  it  from  the  knowledge  of  the 
reader.  When  he  came  to  Ebel  he  feigned  interest  in 
religion  ;  but  intercourse  with  him  soon  convinced  the 
former  that  he  was  a  slippery  subject,  by  no  means  fit  to 
be  received  into  the  church  until  he  had  stood  the  test  of 
prolonged  probation  and  given  evidence  of  the  sincerity 
of  his  motives  by  actual  reformation,  Schonherr  knew 
Sachs,  and  regarded  him  differently  from  Ebel ;  he  re- 
quested the  latter  in  his  instruction  to  make  him  familiar 
with  his  own  system,  in  the  expectation  that  a  man  of 
Sachs'  intellectual  strength  and  metaphysical  acumen 
needed  only  the  knowledge  of  the  truth,  and  that  the 
rest  would  follow  of  its  own  accord.     Ebel  declined  to 


SCHONHERR  AND   FALSE   FRIENDS.  Ill 

comply  with  his  request,  and  insisted  that  Sachs  must 
reform.  Schonherr  undertook  to  interfere  in  the  matter, 
and,  in  a  personal  interview  with  Sachs,  urged  him  un- 
successfully to  adopt  his  system.  The  haughty  manner 
in  which  Sachs  met  him  he  foolishly  charged  on  Ebel, 
and  resented  accordingly.  This  brought  about  an 
estrangement  which  widened  into  a  breach,  induced  by 
circumstances  that  require  a  somewhat  longer  explana- 
tion. 

Schonherr  had  fallen  into  the  erroneous  and  mischiev- 
ous conceit  that  all  persons  who  had  once  admitted  the 
validity  and  tenableness  of  any  of  his  philosophical  views 
were  tacitly  obliged  blindly  to  receive  all  his  dicta,  which, 
in  many  respects,  were  simply  preposterous.  All  reason- 
ing on  them,  all  counter-representations  on  the  part  of 
those  whom  he  regarded  as  his  disciples  were  useless,  be- 
cause he  deemed  them  impertinences,  and  appeared  to 
think  that  they  must  forever  occupy  the  seat  of  learners, 
and  he  that  of  teacher.  His  sensitiveness  on  this  point 
was  painful  in  the  extreme  to  his  friends,  who  tried  every- 
thing they  could  think  of  to  convince  him  of  the  error  of 
his  positions.  He  could  not  but  see  and  feel  that  his  in- 
fluence was  waning,  and  that  his  authority  was  not  recog- 
nized. To  re-assert  and  re-establish  it  he  communi- 
cated to  his  friends  what  he  appeared  to  regard  as  a 
special  revelation,  that  in  order  to  make  knowledge  ot 
saving  efficacy  Scripture  seemed  to  intimate  the  neces- 
sity of  some  outward  means  of  sanctification,  and  that 
means  was — a  peculiar  kind  of  flagellation.  His  friends 
felt — and  who  can  help  feeling  with  them  ? — that,  on  that 
point,  his  intellect  was  at  fault,  and  that  they  must  leave 
no  means  untried  to  convince  him  of  the  absurdity  and 
unscripturalness  of  so  extraordinary  an  expedient.     But 


112  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

no  amount  of  kindly  expostulation,  reasoning,  and  ap- 
peal to  the  Scriptures  would  make  him  abandon  the 
position  he  had  once  taken.  Contradiction  and  opposi- 
tion only  increased  his  infatuation  and  threw  him  into  an 
excitement  which  sought  and  found  expression  in  violent 
speech  that  rendered  personal  intercourse  not  only  unde- 
sirable, but  simply  impossible. 

To  Ebel,  the  aberration  and  spiritual  hallucination  of 
his  old  friend  was  unspeakably  painful,  and  he  felt  it  his 
duty  to  define  his  own  position,  to  bring  him  back  to 
reason,  and  when  every  step  in  that  direction  had  proved 
utterly  useless,  and  there  seemed  no  hope  to  eradicate  this 
species  of  monomania  (for  monomania  it  was)  from  the 
deluded  man,  to  break  off  all  intercouse  with  him.  And 
this  he  did  in  an  exceedingly  beautiful  and  touching 
letter,  which  is  printed  in  Count  Kanitz's  Aufkldrung. 

If  it  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  deluded  Schonherr, 
during  the  last  sad  years  of  his  life,  looked  upon  himself 
pretty  much  in  the  light  of  a  favorite  of  heaven  invested 
with  infallibility,  how  could  Ebel,  as  a  conscientious 
minister  and  a  friend,  act  otherwise  than  he  did  ?  He 
could  not  leave  him  without  telling  him  why,  and  he 
would  not  tell  him  why  he  left  him  without  telling  him 
the  truth,  and  how  delicately,  how  kindly,  and  yet  how 
firmly  he  discharged  that  duty  is  apparent  from  this  brief 
extract : 

"Dearest  brother,  you  cannot  be  saved  unless  you  become 
rooted  and  grounded  in  the  faith.  But  you  are  not  rooted 
and  grounded  therein  ;  you  lack  humility  and  gentleness, 
which  I  trust  may  be  vouchsafed  to  you.  The  resolution  to 
surrender  personal  intercourse  with  you  has  been  the  hard- 
est and  sorest  trial  I  ever  experienced  ;  I  have  placed  the 
whole  matter  before  God,  and  for  long,  weary  months  have 


SCHONHERR  AND   FALSE   FRIENDS.  II3 

struggled  and  striven  to  find  another  solution,  struggled  as 
if  it  were  with  death,  and  reached  a  position  in  which  all  per- 
sonal consideration  and  the  promptings  of  my  own  will  are 
set  aside  by  the  will  of  God  in  the  clear  perception  of  duty. 
.  .  .  Therefore,  dear  brother,  I  cannot  consent  to  a  re- 
vival of  our  relations  unless  I  have  abundant  assurance  that 
you  have  attained  to  self-knowledge,  and  the  pledge  of  my 
success  in  having  convinced  you  of  the  error  of  your  pro- 
posal. I  cannot  tell  how  soon  or  how  late  the  joy  may  be  in 
store  for  me  of  seeing  you  humbled  at  the  feet  of  Christ, 
changed  from  one  that  exclaims,  '  I  thank  thee,  O  God,  that  I 
am  not  as  other  men  are  ! '  into  one  that  cries  out,  'God  be 
merciful  to  me  a  sinner  ! '  But  of  this  I  am  sure,  that  only  in 
this  change  of  disposition  can  peace  enter  our  heart  and  bring 
rest  to  our  soul  ;  that  it  is  the  only  way  to  secure  peace,  and 
that  even  as  I  have  found  it  in  that  way,  so  you  must  find  it  in 
the  same  manner  and  by  the  same  means.  O,  my  dear 
friend,  beloved  Schonherr,  how  do  I  yearn  to  be  at  one  with 
you  in  heart  and  soul.  Prayerfully,  trustfully,  I  long  with 
intensest  longing  for  the  coming  of  that  time." 

But  all  was  in  vain  ;  he  proved  deaf  to  every  entreaty, 
and  the  breach  was  irreparable. 

It  is  not  certain  that  Schonherr  even  read  the  letter, 
for  it  was  stated  at  the  time  that  he  burnt  it  unread  ;  but 
it  is  certain  that  it  terminated  all  personal  commerce  be- 
tween them.  Separation  was  inevitable  under  the  cir- 
cumstances of  the  case,  and  unspeakably  painful  to  Ebel, 
who  really  loved  his  misguided,  deluded  friend,  con- 
tinued to  watch  over  him,  and  anonymously  to  minister 
to  his  necessities  until  he  died  in  1826. 

The  great  sorrow  caused  by  the  lamentable  aberration 
of  his  friend  had  to  be  borne,  like  all  great  sorrows,  in 
resignation  to  the  will  of  God,  and  did  not  in  any  way 
interfere  with  the  ever-growing  duties  of  his  sacred  call- 


114  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

ing  in  so  large  a  parish.  To  a  man  of  his  strength  and 
noble  spiritual  calibre,  in  tender  sympathy  with  suffering 
humanity,  ready  to  spend  himself  and  to  be  spent  in  the 
Master's  service,  the  condition  of  \kiQ  poor^  and  the  ame- 
lioration of  their  state,  afforded  scope  for  the  practical 
outgoings  of  his  love.  They  flocked  to  him,  and  he  loved 
to  remember  them  for  Jesus'  sake.  Of  course,  he  gave 
the  preference  to  the  deserving  poor,  especially  when  he 
saw  want  in  situations  requiring  tact  and  delicacy  in 
the  communication  of  relief.  He  would  quietly  provide 
himself,  and  induce  others  to  provide  for  poor  students 
books,  apparel  and  board.  Although  it  was  his  studious 
endeavor  to  discriminate  among  those  who  applied  for 
relief,  he  would  rather  incur  the  charge  of  being  too 
charitable  than  of  running  the  risk  of  refusing  a  claim. 
His  object  was  to  prevent  poverty  from  degenerating 
into  pauperism  or  beggary,  and  as  early  as  1818,  he 
founded  in  concert  with  a  noble  Christian  lady,  Frau  von 
Auerswald,  a  charitable  work  called  "  Armenpflege,"  or 
"  Care  of  the  poor,"  the  numerous  members  of  which 
were  philanthropists  of  both  sexes,  belonging  to  the 
higher  and  middle  classes  of  society  ;  the  principles  on 
which  relief  was  administered  to  every  form  of  misery 
were  so  admirable  and  beneficial  that  they  were  speedily 
adopted  by  a  similar  charitable  association  instituted  by 
others.  These  principles  were  briefly  :  domiciHary  vis- 
itation by  judicious  and  kindly  folk  ;  the  withholding  of 
gifts  from  beggars  until  their  case  had  been  verified  by 
personal  investigation.  The  plan  proved  wonderfully 
successful,  not  only  in  the  application  of  temporary  relief, 
but  in  providing  permanent  means  of  support  in  the  sup- 
ply of  appropriate  work,  and  in  giving  their  children  a 
free  education  in  schools  specially  arranged  for  the  pur- 


SCHONHERR  AND   FALSE   FRIENDS.  II5 

pose  ;  in  that  way  the  deserving  poor  were,  by  their  own 
industry  aided  to  comfortable  circumstances,  without  the 
loss  of  self-respect.  The  whole  enterprise  was  inspired 
by  a  loving  zeal  for  the  amelioration  of  the  physical  and 
moral  condition  of  the  poor,  in  which  all  the  members 
sought  to  emulate  each  other  in  devising  practical  ex- 
pedients for  the  accomplishment  of  their  noble  purpose. 
Poor  mechanics  were  either  presented  with  the  tools  of 
their  trade,  or  loans  of  money  were  granted,  enabling 
them  to  resume  their  trade  ;  and  their  children,  if  their 
ability  warranted  the  measure,  were  cared  for  until  they 
were  qualified  to  enter  the  university.  Another  feature 
was  the  rigid  requirement  that  applicants  for  relief  should 
be  truthful ;  where  relief  had  been  secured  on  false  pre- 
tence, it  could  not  be  repeated.  It  seemed  wisdom  to 
deal  with  them  as  parents  deal  with  their  children,  mak- 
ing their  manner  of  using  the  gifts  they  received  the 
measure  of  their  continuance.  Relief  at  stated  intervals 
was  not  accorded  to  any  until  they  had  given  evidence 
of  ability  to  husband  their  resources.  The  blessed  in- 
fluence of  that  "  Armenpflege  "  on  the  morals  of  neglect- 
ed youth  was  universally  recognized.  The  interest 
exhibited  by  the  lady  members  in  the  welfare  of  mem- 
bers of  their  own  sex  by  teaching  them  the  various 
branches  of  needlework  found  speedy  appreciation  in 
the  founding  of  an  Industrial  School.  It  was  in  every 
sense  a  blessed  work  ;  and  Ebel,  in  concert  with  his 
friend  Diestel,  was  instrumental  in  the  establishment, 
at  a  somewhat  later  period,  of  Schools  for  the  Poor. 

He  took  the  most  lively  interest  in  schools,  and  was 
always  ready  to  aid  in  their  prosperity  and  improvement ; 
for  he  loved  youth  ;  and  the  way  in  which  he  explains 
his  interest  is  as  touching  as  it  is  simple  : 


Il6  FAITH  VICTORIOUS. 

"  '  Suffer  the  little  children  to  come  unto  me,  and  forbid 
them  not,  for  of  such  is  the  kingdom  of  God.'  So  He 
thought,  adding :  '  Verily  I  say  unto  you,  whosoever  shall 
not  receive  the  kingdom  of  God  as  a  little  child,  he  shall  not 
enter  therein  ; '  that  conveys  a  lesson  to  you  which  requires 
no  further  explanation.  But  if  you  wish  to  know  the  best 
method  of  training  them  for  heaven  learn  once  more  from 
Him  :  '  And  He  took  them  up  in  His  arms,  put  His  hands 
upon  them  and  blessed  them  '  (St.  Mark  x.  14-16),  for  love 
is  the  fulfilment  of  the  law." 

It  was  at  his  instance,  in  concert  with  Diestel,  that  a 
competent  teacher  was  sent  to  England  (with  money  pro- 
vided for  the  purpose  by  Count  Donhoff),  to  study  the 
Bell-Lancaster  method,  and  to  arrange  the  Schools  for 
the  Poor  on  their  model. 

The  limits  of  his  parish  extended  beyond  the  city,  and 
embraced  a  rural  district  inhabited  by  a  mixed  popula- 
tion with  a  large  sprinkling  of  poor  people.  The  Com- 
mon School  System  which  provides  a  free  education  to 
the  whole  community,  was  until  recently  an  essentially 
American  institution.  In  Germany,  where  education  is 
now  compulsory,  there  was  at  the  period  in  question  much 
room  for  improvement,  and  ''  the  school-money "  was 
the  great  stumbling-block  in  the  way  of  the  poor  to  give 
their  children  a  school  education.  In  order  to  stimulate 
the  love  of  the  school  among  his  country  parishioners, 
he  told  them  that  if  they  would  send  their  children  reg- 
ularly to  school  he  would  see  that  "  the  school-money  " 
was  paid  ;  this  told,  and  he  further  encouraged  them  by 
providing  them  with  school-books  and  bibles.  The 
school  was  at  a  considerable  distance  from  the  dwell- 
ings of  a  number  of  poor  people,  so  that  the  scant  cloth- 
ing of  the  children  presented  another  difficulty  during 


SCHONHERR  AND   FALSE   FRIENDS.  11/ 

the  intense  cold  of  the  winter  nwnth^  ;  in  order  to  over- 
come it,  and  to  provide  likewise  for  books,  etc.,  he  ex- 
cited an  interest  in  their  condition  among  citizens  of 
Konigsberg  who  during  the  summer  were  in  the  habit 
to  move  to  the  Hufen  (the  rural  district  in  question), 
and  founded  the  Hufen- Schul-  Verein  (The  Hitfen  School 
Association)  with  very  satisfactory  results.  Thus  in  ame- 
liorating the  condition  of  the  poor  he  likewise  promoted 
a  new  source  of  happiness  in  the  hearts  of  the  wealthy. 

Ebel's  love  of  youth  and  interest  in  education  were  so 
intense  that  he  was  ever  ready  to  assume  new  voluntary 
duties  in  that  direction.  There  was,  e.  g.,  a  select  private 
school  for  youth  of  both  sexes,  conducted  by  Director 
Ullrich,  which  justly  enjoyed  the  reputation  of  great  ex- 
cellence, and  was  chiefly  patronized  by  people  of  the 
highest  culture,  belonging  to  the  best  classes  of  society. 
His  own  children  attended  that  school,  and  he  under- 
took, in  addition  to  his  multifarious  duties,  to  conduct 
the  religious  instruction  in  it,  devoting  to  each  depart- 
ment several  hours  a  week,  to  the  great  and  lasting  spir- 
itual benefit  of  the  pupils,  who  almost  worshipped  their 
kind  teacher  and  friend. 

To  a  man  of  Ebel's  make,  social  intercourse  and  the 
culture  of  friendship  were  unspeakably  precious.  On 
the  subject  of  friendship  this  passage  from  "  Gedeihliche 
Erziehujig^''  p.  no  sq.,  will  be  read  with  interest. 

^'  A  true  friend  is  a  great  boon  ;  he  that  has  one  has  a  great 
treasure,  and  the  friendship  which  Jesus  offers  us  surpasses 
all  the  treasures  of  this  world.  But  that  friendship  will  prove 
a  failure  unless  we  co-operate  with  Him  ;  co-opera{ion  is 
necessary  to  its  enjoyment,  for  friendship  is  a  reciprocal  rela- 
tion. Inquire  into  its  nature,  reflect  that  it  necessarily  in- 
volves mutual  confidence  and  mutual  responses,  and  active 


Il8  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

co-operation,  and  you  will  find  the  reason  why  this  true 
friendship  and  the  cheerfulness  that  follows  in  its  train  are  so 
rarely  met  with  ;  why  just  the  most  spiritually-minded  men 
are  often,  for  that  very  reason,  so  ineffably  unhappy  ;  why  you 
yourself  are  sometimes  so  dejected  and  capricious.  You 
cannot  do  violence  to  your  nature  without  injury  to  your- 
self." 

What  he  means  is  that  the  culture  and  promotion  of 
true  friendship  is  an  oft-neglected  element  of  our  own 
happiness  ;  but  if  we  joy  in  the  possession  of  that  true 
"  friend  that  sticketh  closer  than  a  brother,"  of  whose 
sympathy  and  unfailing  help  we  are  ever  sure,  we  are 
blessed  indeed.  And  the  friendship  of  Jesus  is,  after  all, 
the  pattern  of  all  earthly  friendship. 

Ebel  had  good  cause  to  know  the  vast  difference  of 
mere  earth-born  friendship  and  friendship  engendered 
by  the  love  of  Christ.  It  was  his  sad  lot  to  be  injuri- 
ously entreated  by  untrue  friends,  "  who  took  sweet 
counsel  together,  and  walked  unto  the  house  of  God  in 
company  "  (Ps.  Iv.  14),  but  his  vastly  greater  fehcity  to 
be  blessed  with  a  number  of  true,  devoted  friends,  of 
many  a  Jonathan  who  "loved  him  as  his  own  soul"  (i 
Sam.  xviii.  i),  w^ho  clave  to  him  with  an  intensity  of 
attachment  rarely  met  with,  and  perhaps  never  eclipsed, 
as  I  shall  have  occasion  to  show  in  the  sequel.  Mag- 
nanimity was  one  of  his  shining  virtues  ;  he  loved  to  ex- 
patiate on  the  excellencies  of  men,  to  rehearse  and  pub- 
lish their  acts  of  kindness,  and  to  cover  with  the  mantle 
of  his  love  their  shortcomings  and  the  injuries  they  had 
inflicted. 

He  was  fond  of  congenial  society,  and  encouraged 
social  gatherings,  not  of  the  trivial,  unprofitable  sort,  not 
for  gossip  and  that  into  which  gossip  so  often  degene- 


SCHONHERR  AND   FALSE   FRIENDS  II9 

rates,  censoriousness  and  slander,  but  gatherings  designed 
for  higher  and  nobler  ends.  It  was  not  so  much  the 
discussion  of  persons  as  of  things,  of  specific  topics  re- 
lating to  the  grand  and  passing  events  of  the  period,  with 
duties  springing  from  them,  for  immediate  use  and  appli- 
cation in  the  outward  relations  of  life,  but  chiefly  and 
supremely  as  bearing  on  the  culture  of  the  soul. 

He  had  come  in  direct  contact  with  the  very  best  peo- 
ple at  Konigsberg  in  every  sense  of  the  word  ;  there 
were  the  Auerswalds  and  Schrotters,  who  led  society  ; 
the  head  of  the  Auerswald  circle  was  the  governor  of  the 
province,  and  the  venerable  Schrotter  its  chancellor. 
Their  very  position  indicated  the  highest  social  rank  and 
intellectual  superiority,  and  when  they  began  to  encour- 
age the  indefatigable  zeal  of  the  eloquent,  soul-stirring 
preacher  of  the  Old-Town  Church  by  cultivating  intimate 
social  relations  with  him,  they  encouraged  and  fostered  a 
new  spirit  that  entered  and  animated  the  whole  complex 
of  society.  The  soul  of  the  new  spirit  was  Ebel,  ever 
prompting  and  stimulating  the  noblest  purposes.  It  was 
an  unheard-of  thing  in  those  days  that  topics  of  religion 
were  not  only  tolerated  but  deliberately  started  on  festal 
occasions.  A  spirit  of  earnest  inquiry  had  entered  into 
the  minds  of  men,  and  prompted  expression  when  they 
assembled  in  numbers.  It  must  not  be  imagined  that 
festal  assemblies  were  metamorphosed  into  religious  gath- 
erings, or  that  religious  themes  were  thrust  upon  reluct- 
ant ears.  It  was  nothing  of  the  kind  ;  it  was  the  spon- 
taneous utterance  of  deep  heart-yearnings.  Groups  of 
ladies  and  gentlemen  would  discuss  with  great  earnest- 
ness the  momentous  themes  of  renovation  and  the  des- 
tiny of  man,  and  bystanders  would  take  part  in  the  dis- 
cussion.    Even  young  people  would  debate  such  matters, 


I20  FAITH  VICTORIOUS. 

and  on  one  occasion  when  the  venerable  Chancellor  and 
an  old  lady  of  his  acquaintance  had  attentively  followed 
their  interesting  conversation,  the  latter  exclaimed,  sur- 
prised :  "  Just  to  think  of  the  topics  our  youth  now  select 
for  discussion  in  public  ;  who  would  ever  have  thought 
of  such  a  thing  when  we  were  young  ! "  to  which  the 
former  replied  with  great  warmth  :  '' Nobody  ;  but  it  is 
beautiful !  " 

One  of  the  topics  of  the  times,  of  profound  interest  to 
the  most  thoughtful,  was  the  establishment  of  the  kingdom 
of  God  upon  earth.  It  was  presented  one  day  by  Ebel 
before  a  select  circle  in  the  Chancellor's  house,  with  his 
usual  vivacity  and  earnestness,  and  as  he  portrayed  the 
felicity  of  its  establishment  and  adduced  passage  upon 
passage  from  the  Word  of  God,  the  venerable  Schrotter, 
profoundly  moved,  held  out  his  hand  to  him  and  said  : 
"Would  that  I  might  rise  to  enjoy  that  blissful  time  !  " 

It  is  very  natural  that  the  intimate  friends  of  Ebel 
were  persons  of  an  intellectual  and  spiritual  turn.  The 
manner  in  which  this  social  element  sprang  into  being 
and  became  developed  is  stated  best  in  his  own  words  : 

*'  I  had  resolved  to  obey  God  and  be  an  honest  teacher.  In 
this  spirit  I  preached  and  met  those  who  entered  into  the 
spirit  of  Christianity  and  sought  me  for  counsel  and  encour- 
agement. In  that  way  a  few  became  my  intimate  friends. 
Every  clergyman  is  bound  first  to  attend  to  his  own  soul,  and 
then  to  urge  upon  his  people  the  same  culture.  Those  who 
feel  that  want,  and  are  responsive  to  the  word  of  exhortation, 
natually  seek  intercourse  with  their  pastor,  and  there  must  be 
in  all  congregations,  served  by  truly  honest  pastors,  a  small 
band  of  such  persons,  who  are,  as  it  were,  the  salt  of  the  con- 
gregation, in  whom  a  truly  Christian  life,  based  on  mutual 
union,  develops  according  to  the  peculiar  wants  and  qualifi- 
cations of  each  individual.     Where  such  is  not  the  case  the 


SCHONHERR  AND   FALSE   FRIENDS.  121 

flock  is  asleep  and  the  pastor  spiritually  dead.  The  ministry- 
is  not  a  trade,  in  which  sermons  and  official  acts  are  dis- 
patched by  the  hour  ;  a  preacher  must  strive  to  infuse  into 
his  congregation,  and,  as  far  as  his  influence  goes,  into  his 
time,  an  ennobling  spirit.  I  have  striven  to  foster  such  a 
spirit  in  my  congregation  and  in  this  city,  with  the  result  that 
certain  persons  advanced  to  a  higher  plane  of  the  Christian  life 
and  came  into  more  intimate  relations  to  me." 

As  these  persons  happened  to  occupy  likewise  a  very 
high  social  position,  the  commanding  influence  of  Ebel 
was  peculiarly  obnoxious  to  other  clergymen  who  did 
not  and  could  not  wield  it  themselves,  and  laid  him  open 
to  the  approaches  of  self-seekers,  who  sought  to  further 
their  own  private  ends  by  pretended  sympathy  with  his 
views,  so  largely  shared  by  very  influential  and  promi- 
nent members  of  society,  with  whom  they  hoped  to  be- 
come connected  in  the  charmed  circle  that  had  gathered 
round  Ebel. 

Of  that  make  were  three  persons  in  particular,  to  whom 
I  must  now  refer.  The  first.  Dr.  Sachs,  has  already  been 
mentioned.  Ebel  penetrated  him  from  the  start  as  a 
man  of  very  dubious  morality,  and  hesitated  a  consider- 
able time  before  he  received  him  into  the  church,  but 
when  under  his  instruction  he  awoke  to  better  self-knowl- 
edge and  vowed  amendment,  Ebel  felt  it  his  duty  to 
comply  with  his  earnest  request  to  admit  him,  his  wife, 
and  a  young  child  by  baptism  into  the  church.  Sachs 
had  chosen  as  his  sponsors  Count  and  Countess  Kanitz, 
two  intimate  friends  of  Ebel,  and  endowed  with  a  rare 
combination  of  intellectual  strength  and  culture  as  well 
as  of  the  purest  Christian  goodness  of  heart ;  they  were 
truly  pure  in  heart,  and  as  good  and  kind  as  they  were 
pure.  As  I  have  read  their  life,  and  have  had  oppor- 
6 


122  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

tunity  to  know  how  they  thought  and  felt,  I  feel  con- 
strained to  say  that  their  lives  exhibited  many  of  the 
graces  mentioned  in  the  beatitudes,  and  their  love  much 
of  what  St.  Paul  beautifully  delineates  in  i  Corinthians 
xiii.  The  Sachs  family  Vv^as  baptized  in  1818,  and  the 
doctor  numbered  among  his  patients  not  only  Ebel  and 
Kanitz,  but  a  large  number  of  their  friends  and  acquaint- 
ance ;  and,  if  he  had  been  a  true  man  and  not  a  dissem- 
bler, it  would  not  have  become  necessary  on  their  part 
to  sunder  their  relations  with  him.  But  he  was  incor- 
rigible, and  his  course  so  notorious  and  scandalous  that, 
after  every  attempt  had  failed  to  effect  his  true  reforma- 
tion, they  were  obliged,  after  seven  years  of  endurance, 
to  dismiss  him  in  1825. 

The  second  person  in  question  was  Professor  Herr- 
mann Olshausen,  the  commentator,  w^ho,  in  the  autumn 
of  182 1,  came  to  Konigsberg,  and  felt  much  interested 
in  Ebel's  preaching.  After  attending  his  ministry  for 
eight  or  nine  months  he  came  into  nearer  relations  with 
him,  "and  heard,"  as  he  expresses  it,  "  earnest  exhorta- 
tions to  a  holy,  self-denying  life  in  his  circle."  He  also 
was  a  self-seeker,  and,  I  am  sorry  to  say,  a  contemptible 
individual  ;  this  will  be  shovvm  in  the  sequel,  and  is 
proved  in  ^''Die  Liebe  zur  Wahrheit,'  Standpunkt,  p.  liii. 
sqq.  For  the  present  the  statement  must  suffice  that  he 
did  not  frequent  Ebel's  church  because  he  really  sympa- 
thized with  him,  although  he  pretended  such  sympathy 
for  several  years,  but  because  he  hoped  that  the  connec- 
tion with  Ebel  and  his  influential  friends  might  facilitate 
his  promotion  to  a  professorship. 

The  third  person  was  a  theological  student  of  the  name 
of  Tippelskirch,  who,  early  orphaned,  had  found  a  home 
in  the  family  of  Count  Kanitz,  and  received  there,  as  well 


SCHONHERR  AND   FALSE   FRIENDS.  1 23 

as  at  the  hands  of  Ebel,  an  unmeasured  amount  of  good. 
He  was  an  unruly  and  unmanageable  boy,  who  needed 
the  most  careful  and  watchful  oversight,  but  it  seemed 
that  the  excellent  ministrations  of  Kanitz  and  Ebel  had 
so  far  borne  good  fruit,  that  the  latter  especially  felt 
hopeful  that  the  instruction  preparatory  to  his  confirma- 
tion would  deepen  his  religious  convictions.  But  when 
he  attended  the  university  he  fell  into  bad  and  dissolute 
ways,  and  years  passed  on  before  he  returned  to  serious- 
ness. In  the  year  1822,  however,  he  began  to  change 
and  yield  to  the  good  advice  of  his  kind  friends  with 
gratifying  results,  as  far  as  his  outward  behavior  was 
concerned.  It  was  now  his  interest,  as  he  clearly  per- 
ceived, to  re-establish  their  good  opinion  and  to  work 
himself  into  their  confidence  and  friendship.  And  they 
were  only  too  glad  to  welcome  the  prodigal,  and  put 
coals  of  fire  on  his  head  in  the  hope  that  love  would 
carry  the  day.  It  was  misplaced,  for  he  had  added  to 
his  other  failings  the  vice  of  duplicity. 

Matters  stood  thus  until  a  change  in  the  provincial 
governorship  took  place  in  1824,  when  von  Auerswald 
was  retired  and  von  Schon  appointed  in  his  stead.  The 
latter  was  as  inimical  to  religion  as  the  former  had  been 
in  favor  of  it.  Schon  was  not  only  irreligious,  but  an 
unscrupulous  and  unprincipled  man.  A  single,  but  most 
glaring  instance,  may  suffice  to  substantiate  this  state- 
ment. He  had  been  married  to  a  daughter  of  his  prede- 
cessor, who  died  in  1807  ;  another  daughter,  Eveline 
Ernestine,  had  married  the  Rural  Councillor  von  Barde- 
leben.  She  had  been  awakened  to  religious  convictions 
by  Ebel,  and  was  a  noble-minded  and  devoted  Christian. 
When  Schon  heard  of  it  he  began  to  resent  it  by  de- 
nouncing her  as  a  fanatic  and  a  sectarian  to  her  own 


124  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

husband,  and  so  worked  upon  his  mind  that,  after  six- 
teen years  of  a  happy  married  Hfe,  he  induced  that  hus- 
band to  seek  a  divorce,  which,  with  the  laxity  of  the 
Prussian  code  on  that  subject,  was  obtained.  But  that 
was  not  all ;  in  his  hatred  of  Christianity  he  tore  from 
that  poor  and  almost  frantic  wife  her  only  daughter,  and 
very  soon  afterwards  gave  one  of  his  own  daughters 
in  marriage  to  the  very  man  who,  at  his  instance  and 
through  his  instrumentality,  had  been  divorced  from  his 
wife.  These  revolting  facts  may  be  read  at  length  in  the 
following  works  :  "  Ein  Blick  auf  die  einstige  Stelhmg  der 
Obefprdsidenten  Auerswald  und  Schon"  etc.,  by  E.  E. 
von  Bardeleben  ;  ^''  Die  Liebe  zicr  Wahrheit,''  by  Ida 
Grafin  von  der  Groben  (sister  of  the  former),  and  Ka- 
nitz's  ^^Aufkldrwig^  Schon  hated  all  religion,  and  was 
utterly  heathenish  in  his  views  and  his  practice  ;  he  had 
not  the  faintest  idea  of  Christianity  beyond  the  instinc- 
tive feeling  that  it  is  the  funeral  toll  of  paganism  and 
pagans  like  himself  ;  he  hated  Ebel  and  his  teaching,  and 
all  that  consorted  with  him  or  frequented  his  ministry,  for 
no  other  reason  than  that  the  purity  of  the  preacher  and 
the  translucent  character  of  his  doctrine  set  his  own 
conduct  and  character  in  so  unenviable  a  light.  He  was 
determined  to  crush  out  Ebel  and  his  teaching,  and  how 
he  set  to  work  will  now  be  told. 

The  Old-Town  Church,  in  which  Ebel  ministered,  has 
been  referred  to  in  a  previous  chapter.  How  his  popu- 
larity was  regarded  by  most  of  the  clergy  who  abominated 
his  doctrine  has  likewise  been  abundantly  illustrated  ; 
the  animus  of  t^e  Deputation  also  will  be  remembered  ; 
that  Body  desired  above  all  things  to  get  rid  of  Ebel,  and 
had  tried  ineffectually  to  compass  their  purpose.  Now 
it  so  happened  that  the  government  officer  charged  with 


SCHONIIERR   AND   FALSE   FRIENDS.  1 25 

the  inspection  of  all  public  buildings  was  inimical  to  the 
theology  of  Ebel,  and  it  was  thought  that  with  the  ad- 
vent of  Schon  something  might  be  done  which  would 
effectually  check,  if  not  completely  destroy  the  growing 
influence  of  the  preacher  of  grace.  And  that  something 
was  nothing  less  than  the  demolition  of  the  venerable 
church,  which  for  more  than  five  centuries  had  stood 
firm  under  the  gnawing  tooth  of  time,  in  spite  of  a  slight 
inclination  of  the  tower,  which  for  centuries  had  been 
measured  every  fifty  years  in  order  to  determine  whether 
the  angle  of  inclination  was  growing.  But  as  each  suc- 
cessive technical  examination  showed  that  the  angle  re- 
mained unchanged,  experts  had  reached  the  conclusion 
that  the  settling  dated  from  the  erection  of  the  structure, 
and  that  the  slight  deviation  from  the  perpendicular  was 
not  by  any  means  dangerous.  But  the  said  inspector 
condemned  the  structure  as  early  as  1823,  and  would 
have  rased  it,  if  he  could  have  had  his  own  way  in  the 
matter.  But  Governor  Auerswald,  to  whom  the  congre- 
gation referred  it,  was  too  just  a  man  to  yield  to  the 
arbitrary  demand  of  a  single  individual,  and  at  their  in- 
stance, procured  from  Berlin  a  commission  of  experts, 
acting  under  the  highest  authority  in  the  State,  who  upon 
thorough  examination,  negatived  the  inspector's  proposal, 
and  recommended,  in  order  that  no  precautionary  meas- 
ure might  be  neglected,  an  alteration  in  the  roof  on  one 
of  the  gable  ends,  which  the  congregation  caused  imme- 
diately to  be  made.  While  the  repairs  were  going  on 
the  church  was  closed  for  service,  which  had  to  be  con- 
ducted in  other  church  edifices.  But  the  inspector  dis- 
regarding the  decision  of  his  superiors,  would  not  allow 
the  church  to  be  opened  for  worship  after  the  repairs  had 
been  made  with  a  heavy  expenditure  to  the  congregation. 


126  FAITH  VICTORIOUS. 

whose  finances  were  in  a  crippled  condition  ;  he  was 
interposing  all  sorts  of  objections  and  official  chicanery 
in  order  to  accomplish  his  purpose.  At  this  juncture 
Schon  arrived  in  1824,  and  he  and  the  inspector  agreed 
upon  a  plan  to  accomplish  the  work  of  demolition.  One 
of  Schon's  first  official  acts  was  an  order  directing  the 
authorities  of  the  Old-Town  Church  to  pull  down  the 
condemned  edifice  within  a  fortnight.  "  There  were 
churches  enough,"  he  said,  ''  in  Konigsberg,  and  as  the 
congregation  was  too  poor  to  build  a  new  one,  it  had 
better  be  dissolved."  The  work  of  demolition  was  indeed 
temporarily  arrested  by  the  lepresentation  of  experts  that 
a  much  longer  space  of  time  was  needed  to  take  down 
the  beautiful  organ,  one  of  the  finest  in  Germany,  and 
the  energetic  opposition  of  the  congregation  at  whose 
request  a  second  commission  was  sent  from  BerHn,  to 
report  upon  the  condition  of  the  building.  But  in  spite 
of  their  report,  supported  by  other  persons  of  influence, 
that  the  alleged  fears  of  the  inspector  were  unfounded, 
and  that  there  was  no  danger,  the  hostile  element  suc- 
ceeded in  getting  an  order  from  the  Supreme  Building 
Commission  at  Berlin  requiring  the  church  to  be  closed 
for  a  year,  during  which  time  careful  observations  were 
to  be  made  to  determine  the  possibility  of  its  continuance. 
The  inspector  pursued  a  most  extraordinary  plan  in  con- 
ducting that  observation.  There  was  a  particular  pillar, 
which  he  had  pronounced  defective,  and  in  order  to 
ascertain  whether  his  position  was  tenable,  he  caused  the 
ground  to  be  dug  away  from  the  pillar  on  all  sides  to 
a  depth  at  which  it  stood  entirely  in  water,  and  was 
wholly  without  support ;  the  result  of  this  unique  exam- 
ination was,  of  course,  inevitable  ;  the  pillar  finally  gave 
way,  the  whole  edifice  became  crazy,  and  the  work  of 


SCHONHERR  AND   FALSE  FRIENDS.  12/ 

demolition  became  an  imperative  necessity.  The  pagan 
Schon  had  accompUshed  his  purpose  as  far  as  the  de- 
struction of  that  beautiful  edifice  was  concerned,  but 
beyond  that  he  could  not  go  at  the  time,  for  Ebel,  though 
compelled  to  officiate  in  a  church  at  a  greater  distance, 
had  the  satisfaction  to  see  his  congregation  follow  him 
there,  and  to  become  more  devotedly  attached  to  him 
than  before. 

Trouble,  like  misery,  loves  company.  About  the  same 
time,  the  Ministerium  for  Ecclesiastical  Affairs  at  Berlin 
issued  a  Circular  Rescript  addressed  to  all  the  Consis- 
tories of  the  Prussian  Monarchy,  warning  them  against 
Mysticism,  Pietism  and  Separatism,  and  requesting 
special  attention  to  the  matter  in  filling  vacancies  in 
churches  and  schools.  This  Rescript  became  known  at 
Konigsberg  early  in  1826,  and  one  evening  at  the  house 
of  Count  Kanitz,  Ebel  referring  to  it,  told  Olshausen  and 
Tippelskirch  that  it  was  an  inimical  document,  designed, 
among  other  things,  to  strike  a  blow  at  evangelical  Chris- 
tianity. There  was  no  doubt  that  their  theological  op- 
ponents, aided  by  Schon,  would  leave  no  stone  unturned 
under  the  authority  of  that  edict  to  hurt  the  cause  of  true 
religion  ;  that  a  period  of  probation  was  about  to  begin, 
and  he  deemed  it  his  duty  to  tell  them  that,  if  they 
elected  to  stay  with  him,  their  worldly  prospects  might 
be  injured,  and  it  became  them  now  to  determine  whether 
they  would  leave  him  and  escape  the  persecution  which 
remaining  with  him  was  sure  to  entail  ;  if  they  felt  that 
their  intimate  relations  had  better  cease,  he  hoped  that  it 
might  not  affect  their  friendship  for  him,  assuring  them 
that  he  would  not  on  that  account  withdraw  his  affection 
from  them.  Their  manner  of  receiving  the  intelligence  was 
embarrassed  and  shuffling,  and  lacked  sincerity  ;  it  was 


128  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

the  first  intimation  of  their  defection,  and  Ebel,  who 
would  hardly  have  spoken  to  them  as  he  did,  if  he  had 
felt  quite  sure  of  them,  penetrated  their  motives  that 
night,  and  the  event  showed  that  he  had  not  wronged 
them.  But  their  separation  was  not  effected  in  the  spirit 
recommended  by  Ebel ;  that  would  not  have  done  ;  it 
would  have  proclaimed  to  all  the  world  their  selfishness 
and  time-serving  ;  it  would  have  been  a  public  declara- 
tion that  as  long  as  the  friendship  of  Ebel  was  profitable 
to  them  they  adhered  to  him  and  were  his  enthusiastic 
admirers  and  devoted  followers,  and  that  at  the  first  in- 
dication of  his  waning  power  in  influential  quarters  they 
had  abandoned  him.  That  would  have  unmasked  them 
and  proclaimed  them  unprincipled.  So  they  preferred 
playing  the  hypocrite  a  little  longer,  and  cast  about  for 
an  excuse  designed  to  justify  their  conduct  in  the  eye  of 
the  public.  The  Ministerial  Rescript  seemed  to  fore- 
shadow the  proper  policy  leading  to  preferment ;  it  had 
sounded  the  alarm  about  separatistic  tendencies  ;  the  ma- 
jority of  the  Konigsberg  Clergy,  the  Consistorium,  and 
the  Governor  were  notoriously  inimical  to  Ebel's  the- 
ology, branding  it  as  heretical  and  sectarian.  If  it  could 
be  made  out  that  Ebel  was  a  sectary,  and  they  opposed 
to  his  sectarian  tendencies,  they  would  accomplish  two 
things :  first,  give  a  plausible  and  seemingly  meritorious 
explanation  of  their  separation  from  him,  and  secondly, 
secure  the  favor  of  those  opposed  to  Ebel,  who  in  virtue 
of  their  influence  might  help  them  to  preferment.  That 
was  their  plan  and  policy,  and  Olshausen  set  to  work  to 
give  it  shape.  So  he  wrote  a  long  letter  addressed  to 
Ebel,  in  which  he  told  him  that  it  was  impossible  for  him 
any  longer  to  submit  to  a  hierarchical  guardianship,  the 
authority  whereof,  lacking  as  it  did  the  signs  of  an  im- 


SCHONHERR  AND   FALSE   FRIENDS.  1 29 

mediate  or  direct  revelation,  he  was  constrained  to  call 
in  question  ;  that  the  absorption  of  his  own  (O.'s)  indi- 
viduality in  that  of  Ebel  was  a  thing  not  to  be  borne, 
more  especially  as  he  thought  that  in  Ebel's  "  direction 
of  souls  misleading  elements  were  neither  avoided  in 
practice,  nor  in  the  principles  underlying  it."  If  the 
reader  is  at  a  loss  to  understand  this  vague  language, 
which,  if  intended  to  conceal  thought,  might  have  been 
written  by  Talleyrand,  he  may  console  himself  in  the 
thought,  that  it  was  just  as  unintelligible  to  Ebel  and  his 
friends,  who  could  construe  it  only  one  way,  namely,  that 
it  meant  desertion  and  treachery,  and  base  treachery,  for 
his  true  motive  was  to  ingratiate  himself  into  the  favor  of 
influential  persons  inimical  to  Ebel,  who  on  that  account 
might  reward  him. 

This  is  quite  clear  from  the  express  language  of  Tip- 
pelskirch,  who  undertook  to  deliver  this  letter  to  Ebel, 
with  the  tenor  of  which  he  professed  to  agree,  to  this 
effect,  "  that  there  was  nothing  to  prevent  the  contin- 
uance of  his  friendly  relations  to  Ebel  and  his  friends^ 
and  to  walk  with  them  in  what  he  felt  constrained  to 
describe  as  a  Christian  way  of  excellent  conscientious- 
ness and  purity,  but  the  circumstance  that  they  had  not 
been  publicly  authenticated,  for  he  could  not  possibly 
expect  the  ecclesiastical  authority  to  advance  him  to  a 
position  if  he  were  to  maintain  friendly  relations  with 
Ebel,"  etc.  As  this  statement  is  in  writing,  and  forms 
part  of  officially  accepted  evidence,  it  is  not  necessary  to 
enlarge  upon  it,  although  it  is  quite  pertinent  to  corrob- 
orate the  assertion  by  the  testimony  of  the  judicial  officer 
charged  with  the  official  inquiry,  also  accepted  as  evi- 
dence that  "  it  is  universally  known  that  Ebel  and  01s- 
hausen  were  until  1826  on  terms  of  intimate  friendship. 
6* 


130  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

In  that  year  they  separated,  and  as  public  opinion  de- 
livers k,  solely  and  entirely  because  Olshausen  thought 
thereby  to  secure  a  professorship  in  the  university." 

The  unimpeachable  statement  of  my  late  friend,  Count 
Kanitz,  may  conclude  the  record  of  so  painful  an  inci- 
dent : 

"  It  is  impossible  to  convey  to  those  who  did  not  participate 
in  these  events,  an  idea  of  the  icy  insincerity  with  which  the 
said  Olshausen  and  Tippelskirch  suddenly  dropped  the  mask 
of  hypocrisy,  after  they  had  for  months  feigned  the  most  ar- 
dent friendship,  while  they  were  working  out  their  plan,  and 
in  lieu  of  their  pretended  recognition  of  Ebel's  Christian  ex- 
perience, rose  up  to  teach  and  preach  to  him,  who,  by  their 
own  confession,  had  taught  them  to  find  the  way  to  Christ. 
This  conduct,  doing  violence  to  all  human  feeling,  was  re- 
garded by  Ebel  with  forgiving  and  forgetting  love,  in  which 
he  refused  to  see  anything  but  a  straying  aside,  and  for  which 
he  strove  to  find  extenuating  circumstances  and  excuses." 

What  a  contrast,  and  how  beautiful  in  the  light  of 
those  occurrences,  followed  by  infinitely  worse,  are  these 
words  from  a  letter  of  Ebel  to  his  friend,  Professor 
Rogge,  of  Tubingen,  dated  Jan.  2,  1827  : 

"Just  think,  dear  August,  since  the  last  communion  the 
Friend  above  has  so  entirely  taken  possession  of  and  filled 
my  heart,  that  I  can  only  exult  and  praise  His  grace,  and  in 
that  grace  feel  the  tenderest  love  for  those  who  have  offended 
me.  Oh  !  that  does  me  good !  Love  them  too,  and  do  not 
give  place  to  the  feeling  that  thou  art  not  able  to  call  Herr- 
mann '  Brother.'  The  only  consolation  is,  that  we  do  not  let 
them  go." 


CHAPTER  VI. 

NOBLE     CHRISTIANS. 

Though,  from  the  nature  of  the  case,  chronological 
order  could  not  be  strictly  observed  in  the  chapters  char- 
acterizing the  ministry  of  Ebel,  it  has  been  followed  in 
the  main.  In  order  to  understand  what  follows  it  is  now 
necessary  to  explain  the  social  religious  life  in  the  Old- 
Town  Church  and  to  supply  a  portraiture  of  the  most 
prominent  persons. 

The  cultivation  of  the  social  life  of  a  congregation  is 
an  acknowledged  factor  of  ministerial  usefulness,  and 
every  clergyman  understands  that  much  of  his  success 
depends  on  its  proper  conduct.  There  are  likewise,  es- 
pecially in  large  congregations,  persons  drawn  to  each 
other  by  common  interest  as  to  habits  of  life  and  thought, 
and  certain  degrees  of  culture,  refinement  and  station. 
The  common  interest  of  the  members  of  the  Old-Town 
Church  was  a  strongly  marked  and  positively  pronounced 
spirituality,  and  a  distinct  recognition  of  the  hallowing 
power  of  the  religion  of  Jesus  in  all  the  relations  of  life, 
and  seeing  that  these  distinctively  Christian  views  were 
far  from  general  in  society  at  Konigsberg,  they  felt  the 
necessity  of  drawing  nearer  to  each  other  in  an  informal 
manner  at  gatherings,  which  differed  from  ordinary  social 
gatherings,  in  that  it  was  agreed  by  them  to  substitute 
for  the  conventional  dance,  card-playing  and  unprofitable 

131 


132  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

gossip,  the  discussion  of  rational  subjects,  of  scientific^ 
philosophical,  theological  and  general  interest,  and  to 
diversify  matters  by  the  introduction  of  music  and  the 
reading  of  instructive  essays  and  books.  It  was  a  de- 
lightful circle  in  every  respect.  Ebel  was  the  centre 
round  whom  they  grouped,  but  as  his  versatile  genius 
has  been  sufficiently  described  in  the  preceding  chapters, 
and  as  the  reader  can  readily  form  his  own  judgment 
from  the  particulars  already  furnished,  I  need  not  dwell 
here  at  greater  length  on  his  eminent  social  graces  and 
inspiring  influence.  There  was  the  Rev.  Georg  Hein- 
rich  Diestel,  pastor  of  the  Haberberg  Church,  an  in- 
timate and  devoted  friend  of  Ebel,  a  devout,  noble- 
minded,  lion-hearted  man,  through  and  through  con- 
vinced of  the  inherent  power  of  the  Gospel,  and  animat- 
ed by  indomitable  zeal,  earnestness  and  courage.  He 
and  Ebel  were  very  old  friends,  and  although  he  had 
always  been  a  sound  man,  u  e.  not  a  rationalist,  the  pre- 
cepts, the  teaching  and  the  living  example  of  the  latter, 
according  to  his  own  testimony,*  had  deepened  and 
strengthened  his  personal  relations  to  Christ.  Brought 
up  in  the  school  of  Herbart,  he  abandoned  the  incon- 
sistencies of  that  philosophy,  and  rooted  his  own  in  that 
of  the  Bible.  A  single  sentence  may  suffice  to  character- 
ize the  man  : 

"Truth  bears  testimony  to  itself,  and  scorns  all  other 
demonstrations.  As  the  sun  needs  no  demonstration  that  he 
is  light  and  not  darkness,  so  truth  needs  no  other  demonstra- 
tion than  that  of  its  own  existence  ;  but  as  the  sun  shines 
only  to  those  who  see  and  are  awake,  and  not  to  those  who 
are  blind  and  asleep,  so  truth  likewise  shines  only  to  those 
who  are  receptive  for  it." 

*  Mahjiwort,  p.  99. 


NOBLE   CHRISTIANS.  1 33 

His  was  an  eminently  metaphysical  turn,  and  he  un- 
derstood to  state  the  keenest  analysis  in  clear,  incisive 
and  singularly  open  language.  He  was  a  thoroughly 
practical  Christian,  a  warm  personal  friend  and  a 
charming  companion,  intensely  musical,,  and  his  com- 
positions both  solemn  and  hilarious  possessed  great  merit. 
A  piece  of  his  composing  on  Psalm  cxviii.,  arranged 
for  four  voices  with  his  accompaniment  on  the  piano  is 
pronounced  by  good  judges  as  something  wondrously 
beautiful ;  the  same  applies  to  Psalm  cxxvi. 

Ernst  Wilhelm,  Count  of  Kanitz,*  the  true  and  devoted 
friend  of  Ebel,  was  truly  a  nobleman  in  the  best  accepta- 
tion of  the  term.  As  he  was  his  oldest  friend,  and  sur- 
vived him  upwards  of  eight  years,  so  he  remained  his 
friend  unto  death  and  beyond  it,  as  will  appear  hereafter. 
He  was  a  native  of  Konigsberg,  highly  educated,  an  emi- 
nent jurist,  a  gallant  soldier,  and  last,  not  least,  a  consist- 
ent, devoted  Christian,  an  ornament  of  society,  and  a 
bright  and  shining  light  of  the  Old-Town  Church,  while 
he  was  there,  and  of  the  Church  of  Christ,  wherever  he 
was.  An»obituary  notice,  printed  in  the  Neue  Preussische 
Zettungy  Berlin  Dec.  24,  1869,  and  written  by  an  anony- 
mous friend,  contains  this  summary  of  his  character  : 

"Whoever  knew  the  departed  will  recall  with  feelings  of 
delight  the  modest  dignity  of  his  earthly  conversation,  and — • 
as  the  manner  of  the  Spirit  is — the  silent  energy  of  his  power- 
ful working.  To  practise  love,  to  prepare  joy  to  others,  and 
to  do  good  was  his  vital  breath  ( Athemholen).  When  in  the 
exercise  of  justice  he  had  to  administer  rebuke,  or  punish 
wrong  where  it  had  to  be  resisted,  like  a  genuine  disciple  of 
Jesus,  he  never  fell  from  humility  and  gentleness.  The  in- 
scription on  his  tomb  :  'The  Lord  is  risen  indeed,'  indicates 
and  characterizes  the  strength  of  his  faith.'' 

*  See  p.  121. 


134  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

Fortiter  in  re,  suaviter  in  modo  was  Kanitz,  an  admirable 
companion,  sparkling  in  conversation,  overflowing  with  a 
fund  of  the  most  varied  attainments,  and  not  only-  re- 
ceptive to  whatever  was  good  and  beautiful,  but  com- 
municative of  the  same,  a  man  of  exquisite  taste  (he  was 
a  painter)*  and  unbounded  hospitality.  He  was  married 
twice.  His  first  wife,  Minna  von  Derschau,  a  lady  of 
the  noblest  and  purest  make,  goodness  personified,  living, 
moving  and  having  her  whole  being  in  God,  is  described 
by  all  who  knew  her,  as  a  most  devoted  Christian,  en- 
riched with  peculiar  attractions  and  graces,  intellectual 
and  otherwise,  a  messenger  of  goodness,  an  angel  of 
mercy  among  the  sick  and  poor,  one  of  the  brightest 
gems  in  the  diadem  of  the  Old-Town  Church.  She  died 
after  only  two  years'  marriage,  a  youthful  mother,  in  the 
thirty-first  year  of  her  life,  universally  beloved  and 
regretted ;  ten  days  later  her  precious  babe  joined  her 
in  paradise,  just  as  if  he  had  heard  the  mother's  call  and 
hastened  to  her  embrace.  Her  sister,  who  lived  with  the 
Count,  when  he  died  (her  own  death  occurred  nine  years 
later),  like  all  the  members  of  the  Derschau  family,  was 
an  exemplary  Christian  ;  and  it  was  one  of  the  privileges 
enjoyed  by  the  writer,  to  number  that  noble  lady  among 
his  correspondents.  Kanitz's  second  wife,  Charlotte 
Countess  Fink  von  Finkenstein,  an  intimate  and  obliged 
friend  of  Minna,  married  him  in  1827,  and  humility 
was  one  of  the  predominant  traits  of  that  highly  gifted, 
charitable  and  generous  Christian  lady.  Of  her  humil- 
ity perhaps  the  most  striking  illustration  is  her  life- 
long endeavor  to  keep  green  the  cherished  memory  of 

*  I  have  in  my  possession  some  beautiful  specimens  of  his 
genius,  flowers  painted  from  nature  in  Italy,  Sicily  and  the  Tyrol ; 
they  are  exquisite. 


NOBLE   CHRISTIANS.  1 35 

the  sainted  first  Countess  ;  she  always  thought  of  and 
for  others,  and  never  for  herself  ;  a  most  gracious  and 
hospitable  hostess,  loving  and  delighting  to  render  all — 
and  their  name  is  legion — that  crossed  her  threshold 
happy,  bountiful  in  providing  for  the  bodily  and  intel- 
lectual wants  of  her  guests,  indefatigable  in  labors  of  love, 
and  uniting  with  her  noble  husband  in  countless  benefac- 
tions. Such  were  Count  and  "Countess  von  Kanitz  ;  the 
good  Count  likewise  was  my  friend  and  correspondent. 

Of  Auerswalds  I  have  already  spoken  in  general  terms. 
A  few  additional  details  appear  to  be  in  place  here,  and 
will  be  found  of  interest.  The  head  of  this  noble  family 
was  the  Landhofmeister  and  Oberprasident  (/.  ^.,  the 
Provincial  Governor)  von  Auerswald,  a  name  which  at 
Konigsberg,  and  throughout  Prussia,  has  a  golden  ring  ; 
he  was  a  most  excellent,  patriotic  public  officer,  univer- 
sally beloved  and  respected,  and  his  fame  in  all  these  and 
so  many  other  respects  is  so  well  known  in  the  annals  of 
history,  that  no  words  of  mine  are  needed  to  repeat  here 
what  everybody  knows  ;  but  it  is  not  generally  known, 
that  during  the  years  of  Germany's  great  degradation, 
1 806- 1 809,  king  Friedrich  Wilhelm  III.,  Louise  his 
queen,  and  her  children,  the  late  king  Friedrich  Wil- 
helm IV.,  and  the  present  Emperor  of  Germany  lived 
with  Auerswalds  in  the  Castle  of  Konigsberg,  and  that 
thus  the  latter  became  the  personal  friends  of  the  Auers- 
wald children.  All  the  Auerswalds  were  friends  of  Ebel, 
but  signally  and  singularly  so  the  two  daughters,  Eveline 
Ernestine  von  Bardeleben,  and  Ida,  Countess  von  der 
Groben.  These  two  noble  ladies  were,  under  the  teach- 
ing of  Ebel,  broug'ht  to  the  knowledge  of  Jesus,  and  two 
more  devoted  women,  in  doing  and  suffering,  have  seldom 
lived.     The  sad  trials  of  the  former  have  already  been 


136  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

alluded  to,"^  how  through  the  influence  of  the  pagan 
Schon  her  husband  cruelly  discarded  her.  Her  parents 
were  then  no  more  on  earth,  but  the  truth  that  God 
never  forsakes  His  people  was  beautifully  illustrated 
in  her  experience.  The  sainted  Mrs.  Chancellor  von 
Schrotter,  another  saint  on  earth  in  Ebel's  church,  gave 
her  a  home,  and  tenderly  nursed  her  and  provided  for 
all  her  wants,  until  in  1 845  she  went  out  of  great  tf ibula- 
tion  into  the  rest  that  remaineth  for  the  people  of  God. 
Of  Mrs.  von  Schrotter  and  her  family,  something  will  be 
said  presently. 

But  it  is  especially  her  sister  Ida,  Countess  von  der 
Groben,  who  claims  our  attention  in  a  peculiar  measure. 
Of  the  noble  array  of  Christians  in  that  extraordinary 
congregation,  already  likened  to  a  diadem,  Countess  Ida 
was  the  pearl.  Beautiful  in  person,  mind  and  soul,  em- 
bodied truth  and  goodness,  to  see  and  know  was  to 
love  her.  Quick  in  perception  and  learning,  studious 
and  a  student,  she  was  simply  a  marvel  for  intelligence 
and  versatile  attainments.  Thoroughly  educated,  her 
studies  ranged  through  realms  of  thought  and  informa- 
tion rarely  traversed  by  ladies.  She  was  a  theologian  and 
a  metaphysician  of  no  mean  order  (and  no  man  who  has 
read  her  Liebe  zur  Wahrheit  will  dispute  it,  or  ever  open 
Olshausen's  Commentary  again),  an  excellent  classic, 
her  soul  was  steeped  in  music,  and  she  had  the  gift  of  a 
sweet,  melodious  voice  ;  she  was  a  poet  born,  and  the 
posthumous  volume  of  her  poems  is  equal  to  any  of  the 
kind  in  the  German  tongue  ;  her  poems  on  the  Church 
Seasons  remind  me  of  Keble  in  thought  and  expression, 
others  of  Cowper  for   tenderness,  and  for  the  love  of 

*  See  pp.  123-124. 


NOBLE   CHRISTIANS.  1 37 

nature  of  Wordsworth  (of  none  of  whom  she  ever  saw  or 
read  a  Hne),  and  they  are  one  and  all  as  fine  as  gold, 
pure  as  a  crystal  fountain,  reflecting  the  truth,  the  love, 
the  goodness  and  purity  of  her  God-devoted  soul.  In 
Appendix  C  will  be  found  two  or  three  of  her  briefer 
pieces  ;  they  must  stand  as  they  are  in  German,  to  be 
translated  by  a  Christian  poet  kin  to  the  author  in  genius 
and  feeling.  She  was  also  an  exquisite  hand  at  drawing. 
Early  schooled  in  sorrow,  for  her  husband,  William 
Count  von  der  Groben,  First  Lieutenant  of  the  East 
Prussian  Cuirassiers,  fell  near  Gross  Gorschen,  1813,  and 
she  returned,  a  youthful  widow,  to  her  parents,  and 
through  the  influence  of  Ebel,  who  was  their  pastor,  her 
heart  and  soul,  her  work  and  life,  were  consecrated  to 
the  service  of  Jesus.  This  child  of  God  was  of  medium 
height  and  noble  carriage,  light  brown  hair  covering  a 
noble  forehead,  her  regular  features,  beautiful  com- 
plexion, heightened  by  a  tint  of  delicate  red  in  the 
cheeks,  and  animated  by  the  profound  earnestness  of 
her  innocent,  deep  blue  and  true  eyes  were  accompanied 
by  loveliness,  a  sweet  voice,  vivacity  and  dignified  en- 
gaging manners.  Her  intimate  surviving  friend,  who 
knew  and  loved  her  better  than  any  one,  communicated 
to  me  two  years  ago  the  following  passages  from  the 
biography  of  the  Electress  Louise  von  Brandenburg 
(author  of  the  famous  hymn,  Jesus  Meine  Ztcversicht^), 
which  in  her  opinion  are  an  exact  portraiture  of  the 
character  of  the  Countess  Ida :  "  Like  a  peculiar, 
choice  and  great  blessing  she  had  entered  the  house  and 
the  country — and  like  a  continuous,  ever  new  blessing, 
she  worked  on    in   the  house    and  the  country — and  all 

*  See  Appendix  C. 


138  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

the  blessings  she  dispensed,  all  the  happiness  which  went 
out  from  her  to  others,  and  all  the  loveliness  with  which 
she  conquered  and  won  the  hearts  of  men  were  solely- 
founded  on  and  welled  forth  from  her  living  faith  which 
united  her  to  her  Saviour.  Outwardly  and  inwardly  she 
lived  in  the  grace  of  the  Lord  ;  she  had  laid  hold  of  Him, 
and  would  not  let  Him  go."  Other  particulars  concern- 
ing this  excellent  lady  will  be  found  below. 

Edward  von  Hahnenfeld,  likewise  an  intimate  and 
Christian  friend  of  Ebel,  of  long  standing,  was  a  noble- 
minded  man.  Early  orphaned,  he  was  sent  to  a  Fensio?i 
in  Konigsberg,  where  he  was  roughly  treated  ;  the  only 
sunny  days  of  his  gloomy  youthful  existence  were  the 
Sundays  and  other  days  spent  with  the  Auerswald  chil- 
dren. Ebel  befriended  him,  for  he  was  his  pupil  at 
Frederic  College,  and  took  a  warm  interest  in  his  wel- 
fare. On  the  day  of  his  confirmation  the  Governor 
desired  his  daughter,  the  Countess  Ida,  to  go  to  church 
in  order  that  there  might  at  least  be  one  person  present 
there  who  went  on  his  account.  After  that  solemn  ser- 
vice young  Hahnenfeld  kindly  asked  the  Countess,  his 
senior  in  years,  to  write,  in  memory  of  the  occasion, 
something  in  his  album,  and  she  wrote  these  words  : 
"  Follow  me,  saith  Christ  our  Leader."  These  words  he 
cherished  as  a  guide  star  through  life.  He  was  an  ex- 
ceedingly kind  and  well-informed,  sagacious  gentleman, 
of  great  urbanity,  and  a  delightful  companion.  He 
married  Miss  Zeline  von  Mirbach,  a  lovely  and  high- 
toned,  highly  cultivated  and  very  intellectual  young 
lady.  Both  he  and  his  wife  were  alive  to  everything 
that  was  good  and  noble.  In  his  country  seat  at  Grunen- 
feld  Ebel  lived  from  1842  to  1848,  of  which  more  will  be 
said  hereafter. 


NOBLE   CHRISTIANS.  1 39 

There  was  Baron  Ernest  von  Heyldng,  from  whose 
manuscript  many  of  the  earlier  portions  of  this  volume 
have  been  drawn,  an  out-and-out,  spiritually-minded, 
highly  intellectual  and  devoted  Christian.  Refinement, 
sincerity  and  earnestness,  allied  to  a  cheerful,  urbane 
and  amiable  disposition,  made  him  beloved  by  all  who 
felt  the  outgoings  of  his  gentle,  sympathetic  nature.  He 
had  studied  law,  and  wielded  a  facile  pen.  His  manu- 
script is  beautifully  written,  and  the  matter  is  excellent, 
a  model  of  analysis  and  clearness  of  statement,  couched 
in  language  of  classical  purity  and  finish.  He  died  very 
young. 

The  Schrotter  family  has  already  been  mentioned.* 
The  venerable  Chancellor  von  Schrotter  and  his  wife 
and  children  were  most  refined  and  exemplary  Chris- 
tians. Their  hospitality  and  benevolence  exhaled  the 
purest  Christian  devotion.  Their  daughter  Emilie,  the 
most  intimate  friend  of  Countess  Ida,  has  been  described 
by  her  as  a  most  lovely,  an  almost  perfect  Christian. 
She  died  very  early  (in  the  twenty-eighth  year  of  her 
life),  after  a  life  spent  in  offices  of  love.  Of  the  quality 
of  her  head,  culture,  and  heart  the  following  exquisite 
extract  from  her  memoranda  in  manuscript  may  serve  as 
a  sample  : 

"  What  is  knowledge,  and  what  its  origin  ?  In  reflecting 
on  a  thing  it  is  chiefly  the  head  that  is  exercised,  and  mostly 
in  a  state  of  confusedness,  in  which  the  thoughts,  crossing 
hither  and  thither,  are  hindered  from  clearness  until  they  fall 
into  order  and  collect  in  a  focus,  in  virtue  of  which,  as  it 
were,  a  spark  appears,  emitting  a  luminous  l)eam  on  the  sub- 
ject of  our  thought,  and  enabling  us  clearly  to  cognize  it. 
And  this  takes  place  after  this  wise  :  A  tissue  of  nerves,  having 

*  See  p.  119. 


140  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

their  principal  seat  in  the  brain,  covers  the  body,  and  any 
nerve,  wherever  touched,  conveys  the  intelligence  to  the 
brain,  causing  us  thereby  to  obtain  cognizance  of  the  object 
touching.  These  impressions  passing  into  knowledge  affect 
us  both  outwardly  and  inwardly,  seeing  that  beams  of  spirit- 
ual light  incessantly  act  upon  and  influence  the  inner  man. 

"This  influence  is  not  uniform,  but  conditioned  by  our 
position  and  the  time  in  which  we  live. 

"  Man  resembles  a  musical  instrument,  and  as  every  instru- 
ment emits  its  peculiar,  distinctive  quality  of  sound,  so  every 
man,  in  virtue  of  his  congenital  disposition,  possesses  prop- 
erties distinctively  his  own,  causing  him  to  differ  from  others, 
to  excel  in  one  thing,  to  be  deficient  in  another. 

"  In  this  comparison,  our  impressions  influencing  us  out- 
wardly and  inwardly  resemble  the  melodies  played  on  the 
instrument.  Our  inward  corruption  is  the  cause  that  the 
notes  are  indistinct,  or  sound  wrong  and  impure  ;  they  also 
die  away  with  the  suspension  of  the  efficient  cause,  for  they 
are  not  yet  our  own,  and  we  soon  forget  what  we  knew  and 
expressed  ;  it  is  even  possible  that,  after  some  time,  a  foreign 
and  hostile  spirit  causes  them  to  produce  altogether  different 
melodies. 

"Though  man  cannot  impart  to  himself  knowledge,  yet, 
through  our  own  fault,  much  remains  dark  which  we  might 
know,  and  we  often  neglect  the  duty  of  becoming  clearly  as- 
sured of  what  we  know  {gewiss-wissen).  Others  may  tell 
us  much,  and  to  systematize  and  collect  that  much  is  the 
province  of  the  learned. 

"  Turning  to  God,  however,  is  the  sole  help  to  truly  profit- 
able knowledge,  in  prayer,  that  the  beams  of  His  light  may 
become  fixed  within  us,  and  this  turning  is  the  effect  of  free 
will. 

"  What  is  to  will  ?  The  seat  of  the  will  is  the  heart ;  the 
blood  intimately  connected  with  the  nerves  pours  into  the 
heart,  the  principal  organ  of  life,  and  its  duly  regulated  turn- 
ing and  motion  is  the  time  of  the  spiritual  melody  within. 
For,  as  in  a  musical  instrument,  time  stays  the  sounds  on  the 


NOBLE   CHRISTIANS.  141 

sounding-board,  regulating  their  resonance  in  audible  sounds 
and  melodies,  so  the  turning  of  the  will  in  the  constant  direc- 
tion of  its  surrender  to  God  is  necessary  to  render  possible 
the  staying  of  the  Divine  Spirit  within  us,  whose  focal  light 
may  grow  so  intense  as  to  enable  us  clearly  to  see  true  knowl- 
edge and  the  revelation  of  the  Bible,  as  is  evident  from  the 
example  of  the  truly  enlightened. 

"This  keeping  time  is  in  some  persons  facilitated  by  their 
being  naturally  musical,  but  on  that  account  not  yet  assured; 
it  really  amounts  to  only  a  wish,  for  in  temptation  they  get 
out  of  time,  and  they  cannot  keep  it  truly  until,  by  free  choice 
in  the  work  of  their  regeneration,  by  effort  and  self-denial,  it 
becomes  their  second  nature,  their  own,  enabling  them  to  in- 
dicate the  reasons,  as  they  understand  the  harmonious  con- 
nection of  the  spiritual  world.  This  keeping  time  .  .  . 
is  the  fundamental  trait  of  their  recovery,  with  their  entire 
surrender  to  God,  and  their  happiness  from  being  illuminated 
through  and  through." 

The  mother  of  that  singularly-gifted  maiden  lived  to  a 
happy  old  age  (she  died  in  her  ninetieth  year),  and  never 
wearied  in  well-doing,  utterly  unselfish,  and  extending 
her  benefactions  beyond  her  death,  one  only  ceased  with 
the  death  of  one  of  her  beneficiaries  a  few  months  ago. 
Whatever  was  good,  and  noble,  and  lovely,  and  of  good 
report,  whatever  tended  to  elevate,  improve,  and  refine 
entered  into  and  constituted  the  atmosphere  of  the 
Schrotter  home  at  Konigsberg. 

Charles  Count  of  Munchow,  a  sturdy  noble-minded 
Pomeranian,  brought  up  in  the  fear  of  God,  did  not 
permanently  live  at  Konigsberg,  but  had  been  for  many 
years  a  warm  personal  friend  of  Ebel.  In  his  fourteenth 
year  he  entered  the  army  as  an  officer,  and  served  with 
great  distinction  in  the  campaigns  against  Napoleon,  and 
was  decorated  with  the  iron  cross  in  token  of  his  bravery  ; 


142  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

he  was  an  intimate  and  life-long  friend  of  Count  Kanitz, 
who,  it  will  be  remembered,  served  with  equal  distinction 
in  the  same  wars.  His  military  record  in  the  service  of 
his  king  cannot  be  detailed  in  these  pages,  but  his  much 
longer  and  enduring  service  as  a  soldier  of  Christ,  must 
be  put  on  record  here.  He  was  a  consistent,  honest, 
straightforward  and  outspoken  man,  v/ho  abhorred  every- 
thing merely  formal,  and  simulating  the  religion  of  Jesus, 
which  to  him  was  a  reaHty  imposing  the  ceaseless  renova- 
tion and  sanctification  of  the  Christian  in  all  his  relations  ; 
the  one  thing  needful  to  him  was  to  tread  the  narrow 
way  in  the  imitation  of  Christ,  to  discharge  his  duty  to 
God  and  to  man  in  faith  and  self-denial — and  this,  he 
said,  '^  was  and  is  the  end  and  tendency  of  my  friendly 
commerce  with  Dr.  Ebel  and  some  kindred  minds  ;  and 
this  the  sum-total  of  his  teachings,  advice,  and  luminous 
example,  I  have  made  the  end  of  my  life."* 

He  sent  his  two  daughters  to  Konigsberg  to  be  pre- 
pared for  confirmation.  These  excellent  ladies  continue 
to  follow  in  the  footsteps  of  their  sainted  parents.  One 
of  them  is  unmarried,  the  other  is  married  to  Herr  von 
Woldeck,  and  it  is  delightful  to  state  that  his  family  is  of 
the  Christian  stamp.  Count  Miinchow,  the  last  of  his 
name,  finished  his  warfare  in  i860,  and  Ebel  wrote  to 
his  widow  (who  followed  him  four  years  later)  and 
daughters  :  "  We  hope  that  the  name  of  Miinchow,  by 
whomever  borne,  is  written  in  the  book  of  life  ;  "  and  in 
his  own  journal:  "On  Sept.  26,  i860.  Count  Miinchow 
completed  his  course.  '  They  that  have  walked  in  up- 
rightness shall  enter  into  peace.'  "  (Is.  Ivii.  2,  Luther's 
version.)  f 

^  Aufkldrung,  pp.  276-7.  f  See  also  p.  203. 


NOBLE  CHRISTIANS.  1 43 

Speaking  of  military  men,  I  must  not  forget  to  men- 
tion the  old  and  heroic  Lieutenant-General  von  Larisch 
(who  had  served  under  Frederic  the  Great)  and  his  two 
children,  Captain  Wilhelm  von  Larisch  and  Floribelle  his 
sister.  They  were  most  exemplary  Christians.  The  first 
once  said  to  his  children  in  quaint  and  touching  humili- 
ty :  "  Children  dear,  if  you  see  me  do  anything  which 
you  think  is  not  pleasing  to  God,  I  want  you  to  tell  me 
of  it ;  you  must  not  think  it  improper  because  I  am  your 
father,  for  I  don't  want  to  be  your  father  for  such  a  pur- 
pose." Captain  Larisch,  though  a  brave  soldier,  deemed 
it  his  greatest  felicity  to  cultivate  the  friendship  of  the 
Prince  of  Peace  ;  both  he  and  his  sister  died  young ; 
they  were  members  of  Ebel's  congregation,  conspicuous 
for  their  purity  of  life. 

The  last  in  the  number  of  Ebel's  most  intimate  and 
devoted  friends  to  be  named  here  is  Mrs.  Consentius,  a 
very  remarkable  Christian  lady.  At  the  beginning  of 
this  century,  when  her  husband  still  hved  at  Memel,  the 
merchant  prince  of  that  place,  the  fugitive  king  of 
Prussia,  Friedrich  Wilhelm  III.,  and  Louise,  his  queen, 
found  a  loving  home  in  their  hospitable  mansion,  and 
the  relations  of  queen  Louise  and  Mrs.  Consentius  were 
those  of  tender  friendship.  She  moved,  chiefly  on  Ebel's 
account,  to  Konigsberg  about  the  beginning  of  the  third 
decade  of  this  century,  and  her  home,  like  Schrotter's 
and  Kanitz's,  was  another  spiritual,  intellectual  and 
Christian  centre  at  Konigsberg. 

These  people,  and  many  others  who  for  want  of  space 
cannot  be  enumerated  by  name,  constituted  the  spiritual, 
as  they  were  also  by  culture  and  station,  the  social  dite 
of  Konigsberg,  and  an  account  of  them  was  necessary  to 
explain  not  only  the  envy  of  other  clergymen,  who  for 


144  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

reasons  already  sufficiently  detailed  resented  the  com- 
manding influence  of  Ebel,  but  also  much  that  belongs 
to  the  next  chapter,  treating  of  the  famous  ecclesiastical 
suit,  which,  intricate  as  it  is,  will  be  better  understood 
without  the  introduction  of  personal  matters  there. 

In  the  same  connection  the  introduction  of  two  other 
personages  is  here  in  place.  By  far  the  most  venomous 
of  the  theological  opponents  of  Ebel  was  the  Consistorial 
Councillor  Kahler,  who  in  a  pamphlet  received  as  evi- 
dence, and  forming  part  of  the  official  record  of  the  suit, 
is  thus  portrayed  : 

''  He  became  the  personal  enemy  of  Dr.  Ebel,  because  the 
latter  is  the  personal  friend  of  God,  of  truth  and  of  virtue, 
and  because  the  blessed  influence  of  his  ministry  is  wanting 
in  his  own  (K.'s)  ....  It  is  therefore  not  by  any  means 
surprising  that  a  clergyman  like  Kahler  should  envy,  and 
dare  to  persecute  Ebel,  who  as  a  man  and  as  a  minister  was 
a  standing  rebuke  to  his  own  conscience  and  ministry,  and 
caused  him  by  the  mere  force  of  contrast  to  feel  his  own  in- 
feriority, and  to  see  that  others  regarded  him  in  the  same 
light." 

This  Councillor  Kahler  was  a  member  of  the  local 
Consistory,  and  bitterly  opposed  to  Ebel  from  the  very 
start,  and  it  was  he  whom  Schon  singled  out  as  the  in- 
vestigator of  the  very  charges  which  had  been  persist- 
ently invented  and  propagated  by  himself. 

A  brother-in-law  of  Count  Kanitz,  /.  e.  his  second 
wife's  brother,  Count  Fink,  a  thoroughly  worldly  minded 
man,  who  as  well  as  his  wife,  had  under  the  dominant 
influence  of  Christian  sentiment  among  their  social  peers, 
risen  to  a  certain  show  of  religiousness,  without  being  at 
all  reHgiously  inclined,  and  not  by  any  means  disposed 
to  abandon  their  darling  pursuits  for  habits  of  thought 


NOBLE   CHRISTIANS.  145 

and  life  for  which  they  really  possessed  no  affinity.  He 
belonged  to  a  race,  by  no  means  extinct,  whose  conceit  is 
exactly  adjusted  to  their  intellectual  or  moral  deficiency, 
and  often  about  things  concerning  which  in  the  judg- 
ment of  competent  persons  they  are  ill  informed.  When 
with  the  advent  of  Schon  worldliness  and  irreligion  re- 
gained the  ascendency  at  Konigsberg  these  lukewarm 
Christians  cast  the  straight-laced  notions  of  the  Ebel's 
circle  overboard.  There  were  also  private  matters  which 
influenced  their  conduct,  which  must  now  be  stated. 
Among  the  peculiar  notions  of  Fink  was  the  feudal 
prejudice  that  the  paternal  inheritance  belongs  de  jure 
to  the  male  descendants  and  not  to  the  female,  and  that 
the  latter  depend  on  the  generosity  of  the  former.  Now 
under  the  will  of  her  father,  Countess  Charlotte  von 
Kanitz  had  a  share  in  the  real  estate.  Her  brother  took 
the  convenient  view  that  that  share  should  not  be  touched, 
and  the  interest  due  her  remain  unpaid.  The  Countess 
very  naturally,  especially  as  she  wanted  the  money,  did 
not  relish  the  feudal  notions  which  deprived  her  of  her 
rights,  and  though,  with  great  generosity,  she  had  remitted 
to  her  brother  several  thousand  thalers  of  back  interest, 
yet  as  the  Count,  her  brother,  claimed  the  sole  enjoyment 
of  the  revenue  de  jure,  she  very  gently  but  firmly  resisted 
his  preposterous  claims,  and  asked  that  at  least  one  half 
of  the  annual  interest  be  paid  her.  The  Count  waxed 
very  hot,  and  indignantly  declined  all  concession,  saying 
that  he  was  well  able  to  pay  the  whole  ;  it  was  therefore 
agreed  that  he  should  do  so.  So  he  began  the  payments 
and  indulged  the  curious  habit  of  accompanying  each 
payment  with  offensive  and  abusive  letters.  The  thing 
was  not  to  be  endured,  and  compelled  her  finally  to  de- 
mand the  payment  of  the  principal  as  well  as  of  the  in- 


146  FAITH  VICTORIOUS. 

terest.  Count  Fink  ascribed  this  to  religious  fanaticism, 
and  became  thenceforth  the  bitter  antagonist  of  his  sister, 
her  husband,  Count  Kanitz,  and  Ebel,  whom  somehow 
he  held  responsible  for  their  actions. 

When  Olshausen  and  Tippelskirch  *  left  Ebel  and  his 
friends  they  sought  Fink,  and  as  they  all  thought  they 
had  grievances  to  be  righted,  they  made  common  cause 
against  them,  in  which  Kahler  and  Schon,  who  had 
likewise  their  peculiar  grievances,  heartily  seconded 
them. 

At  an  earlier  period  Ebel  and  Diestel  had  founded  a 
sort  of  clerical  club,  called  the  Frediger  Krdnzchen,  which 
met  at  least  once  a  month  for  the  purpose  of  cultivating 
social  relations,  and  discussing  scientific  and  theological 
subjects.  From  the  nature  of  the  case,  Ebel  was  the 
recognized  head  and  animating  spirit  of  this  club.  Ols- 
hausen, very  ambitious  for  leadership,  and  unable  to 
establish  it  in  that  organization,  started  a  new  one  which 
he  called  the  Clerical  Conference  {Frediger  Conferejiz), 
for  the  manifest  purpose  of  undermining  the  influence  of 
Ebel.  Somehow  the  Conference  did  not  succeed ;  it  had 
been  conceived  in  ill-nature  ;  unfortunately  two  of  its 
members  became  crazy,  and  in  those  days  of  official  in- 
terference the  local  authorities  interposed  and  gave  the 
Conference  the  quietus.  This  was  very  galling  to  Ols- 
hausen, who,  feeling  the  necessity  to  justify  his  course, 
rushed  into  print,  and  as  his  statements  were  very  un- 
guarded and  misleading,  and  assailed  the  views  of  his 
theological  opponents,  his  pamphlet  was  answered  by 
Diestel,  and  led  to  a  long  protracted  theological  con- 
troversy in  which  a  number  of  pamphlets  were  written 

*  See  p.  129. 


NOBLE   CHRISTIANS.  147 

on  both  sides,  with  the  result,  that  Olshausen  was  so 
completely  discomfited  that  it  became  necessary  for  him 
to  leave  the  field,  which  he  did  by  relinquishing  his  posi- 
tion at  Konigsberg  for  one  at  Erlangen,  for  which  latter 
place  he  started  in  1834. 

The  potencies  at  work  to  undermine  the  influence  of 
Ebel  and  Diestel  have  now  been  sufficiently  character- 
ized to  enable  the  reader  to  understand  the  situation. 
The  secret  and,  on  the  part  of  some,  the  openly-avowed 
purpose  of  all  the  parties  concerned  was  the  overthrow 
of  the  hated  Christian  doctrine,  and  the  setting  up  of  a 
secular,  rationalistic,  accommodating  theology,  which 
should  discard  the  element  of  personal  purity,  so  strenu- 
ously maintained  by  Ebel  and  his  friends.  But  how  was 
the  thing  to  be  accomplished  ?  It  could  not  be  done 
openly,  for  Ebel  and  Diestel  were  leaders  of  vast  in- 
fluence and  power,  of  unimpeachable  character,  in- 
trenched in  the  confidence  and  affections  of  the  best  and 
most  influential  people  of  Konigsberg,  and  especially 
Ebel,  almost  worshipped  by  them  for  his  many  and 
shining  virtues.  If  it  was  to  be  accomplished  it  had  to 
be  done  in  a  different  way.  And  that  way  was  to  brand 
Ebel  and  his  followers  with  infamy  by  charging  them 
with,  and,  if  possible,  convict  them  of  heresy  and  sec- 
tarianism. In^countries  like  England  and  America  the 
charge  and  the  conviction  would  not  amount  to  anything 
per  se,  but  in  a  country  where  religion  forms  part  of  a 
State  which  exercises  a  sort  of  paternal  supervision 
over  the  religious  conscience  of  the  people,  the  charge 
amounted  to  a  great  deal,  and  the  consequences  to  the 
persons  accused  and  convicted  would  be  very  serious 
and  disastrous.  But  as  there  was  nothing  in  the  public 
teaching  of  Ebel   and   Diestel,  nor  in  their  published 


148  FAITH  VICTORIOUS. 

writings,  to  sustain  such  a  charge,  other  means  had  to  be 
sought  and  employed  to  forge  one. 

What  these  means  were  will  now  be  narrated.  Schon, 
Kahler,  Olshausen,  Tippelskirch,  and  Fink  started,  each 
in  his  peculiar  way,  the  rumor  that  Ebel  had  founded  a 
sect,  that  it  was  a  heretical  sect,  and  that  all  the  excel- 
lent people  introduced  to  the  reader  in  the  preceding 
pages  were  members  of  that  sect ;  that  they  held  secret 
meetings,  at  which,  under  the  garb  of  religion,  unheard- 
of  immoralities  were  taught  and  practised ;  that  that 
sect  was  an  ulcer  in  society,  and  that  the  interests  of 
public  morals  required  investigation  and  radical  meas- 
ures for  its  suppression  and  extinction.  It  must  not, 
however,  be  imagined  that  these  dreadful  charges  were 
made  openly  or  at  one  time  ;  they  began  to  be  circu- 
lated very  gently  and  cautiously,  and  were  whispered 
about  in  innuendoes  scattered  broadcast  through  society 
in  Konigsberg,  the  province,  and  all  Germany,  in  myste- 
rious allusions  of  dark  import,  and  repeated  and  exag- 
gerated so  often  that  a  public  sentiment  about  them  be- 
gan gradually  to  be  formed.  They  resurrected  the  ghost 
of  poor  Schonherr,  and  alleged  that  his  wildest  and  most 
absurd  vagaries  were  child's-play  as  compared  with  the 
terrible  doings  of  the  Ebelians  ;  the  pagan  Schon  in- 
vented a  peculiarly  offensive  epithet,  and  dubbed  with  it 
Ebel  and  the  Old-Town  Church  people,  and  Fink  hus- 
banded his  efforts  to  the  best  of  his  abihty.  This  feud- 
alist fancied  that  the  Countess  Charlotte's  demand  for 
her  patrimony  originated  in  sectarian  bigotry,  which 
caused  her  to  disregard  his  feudal  rights  and  subordinate 
them  to  the  interests  of  her  sect  and  the  dictates  of  its 
head.  Ignatius  Loyola  and  his  minions,  according  to 
him,  were  paragons  of  virtue  as  compared  with  Ebel, 


NOBLE   CHRISTIANS.  I49 

Kanitz,  the  Countess  Ida,  and  all  the  rest.  He  was  so 
full  of  the  matter,  and  so  eager  for  revenge,  that  he  in- 
dited a  letter  to  a  lady,  altogether  a  stranger  to  Ebel  and 
his  friends,  with  the  request  to  communicate  its  contents 
to  some  of  her  friends  who  were  on  terms  of  friendship 
with  them.  This  lady's  sister.  Miss  Zeline  von  Mirbach,* 
indignant  at  its  vile  calumnies,  received  presently  one  ad- 
dressed to  herself  by  the  selfsame  Fink,  and  sent  it  to 
Diestel,  an  old  and  personal  friend  of  her  family,  for  the 
purpose  of  stopping  the  matter.  Diestel  sent  Fink  a 
scathing  missive,  exposing  his  motives  in  words  of  indig- 
nant disgust,  and  notifying  him  that,  as  he  "  could  not 
allow  Christian  ministers  to  be  persecuted  with  the  vilest 
calumnies  to  the  injury  of  their  sacred  office,"  he  was  re- 
solved to  oppose  him  not  only  then,  but  whenever  he 
should  dare  to  repeat  the  offence,  and  to  publish  its  false- 
hood. 

Fink,  who  had  anticipated  this  result,  mounted  the 
feudal  charger,  and  desired  Diestel  to  retract,  and  when 
he  very  properly  refused  to  comply  with  the  insulting 
request,  he  brought  suit  against  him  for  libel,  and  in 
order  to  create  a  public  opinion  in  his  favor,  he  and  Tip- 
pelskirchf  disseminated  in  a  sort  of  circular  letter,  ad- 
dressed to  persons  in  different  parts  of  Germany,  the 
most  slanderous  reports  concerning  Ebel,  Diestel,  and 
their  friends. 

In  this  round-about  but  most  adroit  way  opportunity 
was  made  to  give  the  charges  against  Ebel  and  his 
friends  publicity. 

According  to  the  then  existing  provisions  of  the  Prus- 
sian code,  the  Criminal  Senate,  before  which  the  suit  for 

*  See  p.  138.  f  See  pp.  122-124. 


150  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

libel  was  pending,  was  bound  to  communicate  the  matter 
to  the  local  ecclesiastical  authority,  the  so-called  Consis- 
tory, of  which  Schon,  the  provincial  governor,  was  ex 
officio  the  presiding  officer,  and  Kahler  a  member.  This 
provision  had  the  double  purpose  of  faulting  the  clergy 
if  they  deserved  censure,  and  of  defending  them  in  case 
they  were  falsely  accused.  The  Consistory  might,  there- 
fore, take  cognizance  of  well-founded  charges  brought 
against  clergymen  presumably  liable  to  them,  but  was 
bound  to  disallow  unfounded  charges  in  the  case  of  per- 
sons of  established  reputation  for  integrity  and  virtue, 
and  of  acknowledged  good  standing. 

But  as  Schon  and  Kahler  were  resolved  to  destroy 
Ebel  if  they  could,  and  to  degrade  his  religious  senti- 
ments, they  pursued  the  unheard-of  and  preposterous 
course  on  the  ground  of  mere  rumor,  without  an  ostensi- 
ble informer  (as  the  law  required)  to  act  the  part  of 
prosecutor  (as  the  law  forbade),  and  in  violation  of  every 
known  principle  of  judicial  process  recognized  in  the 
Prussian  code,  to  appear  in  the  double  capacity  of  prose- 
cutor and  judge,  with  this  further  terrible  aggravation, 
that  the  prosecutor  and  judge  invented  and  manufac- 
tured the  corpus  delicti,  and  then  instituted  proceedings 
against  Ebel  and  Diestel,  as  will  appear  more  fully  in  the 
next  chapter. 


CHAPTER   VII. 

THE    RELIGIOUS    SUIT. 

When  the  Consistory  received  official  information  of 
the  suit  of  Fink  vs.  Diestel  for  libel,  pending  before  the 
Criminal  Senate,  its  president,  Schon,  knowing  all  about 
Fink's  stories  (for  he  had  told  them  to  him),  requested 
him  through  the  Consistory  to  specify  a  few  facts  sub- 
stantiating the  charge  of  sectarianism,  with  a  view  to 
enabling  that  body  to  institute  proceedings  against  Ebel  ; 
a  very  remarkable  course  to  be  pursued  by  an  official 
body  like  the  Consistory,  whose  functions  did  certainly 
not  include  those  of  the  detective  police.  But  as  Fink 
had  no  facts,  but  only  subjective  conjectures  to  communi- 
cate, which  under  the  Prussian  code  are  inadmissible  in 
courts  of  justice,  the  pliant  Schon  overcame  the  difficulty 
by  appointing  Kahler,  a  clerical  member  of  the  Consis- 
tory, as  investigator,  whom  he  knew  to  be  the  personal 
enemy  of  Ebel  and  the  most  bitter  antagonist  of  his 
theological  bias.  As  the  basis  of  his  conjectures.  Fink 
adduced  a  conversation  which  he  pretended  to  have  had 
with  Ebel  thirteen  years  before,  in  the  exact  recollection 
of  which  he  could  not  possibly  be  mistaken  ;  he  also 
produced  a  number  of  letters  written  by  Count  Kanitz 
some  ten  to  fifteen  years  before,  which,  he  alleged,  con- 
cealed a  mysterious  sense  under  their  otherwise   most 


152  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

edifying  language.  He  also  produced  Sachs,*  of  infa- 
mous memory,  as  a  witness  to  corroborate  his  surmises. 
When,  by  questions  adroitly  put,  the  inventive  Sachs  had 
been  given  to  understand  what  kind  of  information  v/as 
wanted  of  him,  he  gratified  the  wishes  of  this  singular 
investigator  to  his  heart's  content,  who  proceeded  there- 
upon to  draft  what  he  called  "a  theological  opinion," 
but  which,  as  to  drift  and  purpose,  not  less  than  as  to  the 
peculiar  denunciatory  and  false  character  of  the  writer 
might,  with  greater  propriety  and  with  strict  reference  to 
the  etymology  of  the  term,  be  described  as  "  a  diabolical 
opinion."  Fink's  wife,  who  twenty-three  years  before 
had  been  prepared  by  Ebel  for  confirmation,  wTote  (when 
does  not  appear)  an  essay  on  her  impressions  of  the  in- 
structions she  had  then  received,  and  which,  she  alleged, 
embodied  the  heretical  notions  of  Schonherr  (utterly  un- 
founded, and  pronounced  so  afterw^ards  by  competent 
judges);  this  essay  was  likewise  received  in  evidence, 
and  used  by  Kahler  as  the  point  of  departure  for  his  in- 
terpretation of  Schonherr's  views,  which  he  fathered  on 
Ebel,  and  pointed  out  that  they  were  of  dangerous  moral 
tendency. 

This  opinion  he  reported  to  the  Consistory,  which 
thereupon,  under  date  September  28,  1835,  summoned 
Ebel  to  appear  before  them  for  the  purpose  of  being  ex- 
amined concerning  the  charges,  which  were  briefly  re- 
ferred to  in  the  summons.  Ebel,  convinced  that  there 
could  not  be  any  well-founded  charges  against  him, 
requested  a  copy  of  the  specifications,  which  the  Consis- 
tory refused,  and  postponed  the  set  hearing  to  October 
5,  1835.     Ebel  appeared  on  that  day  before  the  Consis- 

*  See  p.  121. 


THE   RELIGIOUS   SUIT.  1 53 

tory  and  renewed  his  request,  and  when  it  was  again  re- 
fused, dechned  to  submit  to  an  examination  until  so  just 
a  demand  were  compHed  with. 

In  the  meantime  Count  Kanitz,  who  was  not  only  the 
oldest  and  most  familiar  friend  of  Ebel,  but  also  inti- 
mately acquainted  with  the  informers,  had  offered  to  ap- 
pear before  the  Consistory  to  shed  Hght  on  the  matter. 
But  that  body  would  have  none  of  his  counsel,  and  pre- 
ferred, contrary  to  every  known  principle  of  justice,  to 
receive  the  testimony  of  Fink  and  Sachs  in  support  of 
their  own  accusations,  and  two  days  later,  on  October  7, 
1835,  decreed  that  Ebel  should  be  suspended  from  his 
office,  and  two  months  later,  on  December  9,  the  suspen- 
sion of  Diestel.  This  act  of  violence  is  unparalleled  in 
the  annals  of  Prussia,  as  diametrically  opposed  to  the 
prescript  judicial  process,  and  as  arbitrarily  assuming 
powers  with  which  the  Consistory  is  not  lawfully  clothed 

Ebel,  who  knew  the  temper  of  his  ecclesiastical  op- 
ponents and  their  presiding  officer,  was  not  at  all  sur- 
prised at  their  action,  but,  conscious  of  the  uprightness 
of  his  course  of  life  and  ministerial  conduct,  took  the 
suspension  very  calmly,  while  the  Consistory,  with  a  view 
to  justify  their  daring  action,  adopted  the  following 
characteristic  measures  : 

I.  In  their  official  notification  of  his  suspension  to 
Ebel  they  said  : 

"  The  past  conduct  of  your  office,  acknowledged  and  rec- 
ognized by  this  body  as  zealous  and  blameless,  is  unable  to 
arrest  further  proceedings  on  our  part,  because  it  has  been 
insufficient  to  ward  off  from  you  such  hard  charges." 

This  excuse,  as  Count  Kanitz  tersely  puts  it,  is  invalid 
in  law,  in  logic  and  in  experience.     In  law,  because  the 


154  FAITH  VICTORIOUS. 

law  attaches  the  least  importance  to  a  charge  preferred 
against  a  most  blameless  person  ;  in  logic,  because  not 
every  charge,  as  such,  is  well  founded,  and  because 
nobody  is  able  to  ward  off  from  himself  an  unfounded 
charge,  and  for  the  very  reason  that  it  has  no  real,  actual 
foundation  requiring  to  be  removed  ;  in  experience, 
because  history  affords  many  instances  that  the  noblest 
of  men  cannot  always  ward  off  from  themselves  hard  ac- 
cusations. 

2.  The  investigator  published  an  anonymous  paper  in 
the  Allgemeine  Kircheiizeitung  (Nov.  24,  1835,  No.  177), 
starting  with  the  outrageous  falsehood  that  Olshausen 
had  faithfully  developed  and  clearly  stated  the  doctrines 
of  Schonherr  in  his  work,  Lehre  und  Leben  des  Konigs- 
berger  T/ieosophen,  Johan?t  Heinrich  Schd7iherr,  etc., 
although  only  a  year  before  he  had  maintained  in  another 
place :  Olshausenius  i?i  hanc  rem  scripsit  znscite  satis  et 
injuste.^  He  then  detailed  at  length  the  charges  in 
romantic,  or  as  we  call  it  in  America,  in  sensational 
language,  leaving  it  in  the  reader's  option  to  regard  the 
matter  "  either  as  the  most  fearful  aberrations  of  fanati- 
cism and  hypocrisy,  or  as  senseless  and  culpable 
calumny,"  adding  that  the  high  and  blameless  character 
of  the  accused  constrained  the  assumption  of  the  latter 
alternative,  but  that  nevertheless  the  Consistory  had 
been  compelled,  under  a  strong  sense  of  their  responsi- 
bility, to  decree  their  suspension,  in  order  that  the 
dignity  of  the  ministerial  office  might  be  maintained  and 
the  public  opinion  respected.  This  marvellous  and 
unique  piece  of  reasoning  is  accompanied  by  the  glar- 
ingly contradictory  statement  that  "  the  judgment  of  all 


^  Programm  der  Konigsberger  Universitdt,  1834. 


THE   RELIGIOUS   SUIT.  155 

that  prize  truth  and  morals  was  not  by  any  means 
formed,"  and  that  "the  pubHc  impatiently  and  indig- 
nantly, with  a  preponderating  leaning  against  Ebel  and 
his  friends,  expected  some  decisive  manifestation,  and 
regarded  the  suspension  in  that  light."  The  plain  Eng- 
hsh  of  all  this  being  that  the  writer  deliberately  at- 
tempted to  create  an  unfavorable  public  opinion  con- 
cerning the  persecuted  clergymen,  after  their  suspension 
had  been  decreed,  and  then  pretended  that  the  pressure 
of  that  unfavorable  opinion  was  one  of  the  reasons  for 
the  suspension.  When  subsequently  he  was  requested  by 
Count  Kanitz  to  explain  these  extraordinary  statements, 
he  declared  ad  acta  that  in  using  the  term  "pubHc,"  he 
understood  by  it  "  something  which  is  found  everywhere, 
and  yet  cannot  be  anywhere  definitely  grasped."  And 
such  a  phantom  of  a  thing  was  alleged  to  have  neces- 
sitated the  action  of  the  Consistory,  which  he  sought  still 
further  to  justify  on  the  plea  that  Ebel,  declining  to  be 
interrogated,  and  proposing  measures  calculated  to  pro- 
tract the  investigation,  compelled  that  body  to  suspend 
him.  The  falsification  was  simply  preposterous,  seeing 
that  all  that  Ebel  ever  proposed  was  the  fair  and  sensible 
request  to  have  a  copy  of  the  charges  officially  preferred 
against  him,  which  is  by  universal  consent  the  indisputa- 
ble right  of  one  charged  with  a  misdemeanor  or  crime. 

3.  The  Consistory  likewise  reported  the  matter  to  the 
Ministerium  for  Ecclesiastical  Affairs  at  Berlin,  in  a  way 
designed  to  misrepresent  the  case  and  thwart  the  ends 
of  justice.  They  referred  in  terms  of  holy  horror  to  an 
impending  terrible  popular  excitement,  which  by  their 
speedy,  though  well-matured  action  against  the  offend- 
ers had  been  happily  averted.  The  bugbear  of  the 
alleged  popular  excitement  was  constructed  with  all  the 


156  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

Machiavelian  skill  which  Schon  and  Kahler  understood 
so  well  to  employ.  Six  bills,  they  said,  of  dirty  obscen- 
ity had  been  pasted  up  in  different  parts  of  the  city,  the 
contents  of  which  had  actually  become  known  in  the 
schools.  They  were  comparatively  harmless  lampoons, 
written  by  some  irreligious  person  and  directeti  not 
against  Ebel  and  Diestel  only,  but  against  all  the  ortho- 
dox ministers  of  Konigsberg,  who  were  mentioned  by 
name,  and  breathed  simply  hatred  of  Christianity. 
Whether  the  two  worthies  wrote  or  inspired  them  them- 
selves, cannot  be  proven,  but  it  is  proven  that  they  did 
not  send  the  bills  to  Berlin,  where  the  absurdity  and 
v/ickedness  of  their  falsified  account  would  have  been 
instantly  unmasked  by  their  simple  perusal,  and  pre- 
ferred to  describe  them  as  something  dreadful,  imperiling 
the  safety  of  the  body  politic  and  the  public  morality. 

They  further  alleged  that  Ebel  and  Diestel,  in  order 
to  prevent  threatened  disturbances  in  their  churches, 
had  been  compelled  on  several  Sundays  to  require  the 
presence  of  the  police  during  service,  and  that  the  police 
had  likewise  been  compelled  to  protect  Ebel  and  Kanitz 
in  the  streets  of  the  city  from  the  insults  of  an  excited 
populace.  When  this  matter  was  afterwards  referred  by 
the  Count  to  the  Chief  of  Police  for  verification,  the 
official  report  of  that  functionary  ran  that  although  from 
information  received  (doubtless  from  Schon)  the  police 
had  been  instructed  how  to  act  in  case  disturbances 
should  take  place  during  public  service,  or  in  case  Dr. 
Ebel  or  Count  Kanitz  should  be  publicly  insulted,  yet 
seeing  that  such  disturbances  and  insults  never  did 
occur,  the  police  had  never  been  called  upon,  and  never 
at  any  time  did  interfere.  This  matter,  like  the  lam- 
poon business,  was  purely  invented  by  the   chief  civil 


THE   RELIGIOUS   SUIT.  1 57 

officer  of  the  crown  and  his  clerical  confederate  in  the 
Consistory. 

The  Ministerium  at  Berlin  had  in  its  archives  the 
record  of  the  occurrences  of  18 14,  emanating  from  the 
same  body  and  directed  against  the  same  clergyman,* 
and  reference  to  the  opinion  of  Schleiermacher  might 
have  guided  it  as  to  the  proper  course  to  be  pursued  in 
the  premises,  which  ought  to  have  been  the  cancelling  of 
the  consistorial  decrees  and  the  institution  of  legal  pro- 
ceedings against  the  Consistory  for  culpable  abuse  of 
their  powers  and  perversion  of  the  ends  of  justice  for  the 
gratification  of  personal  enmity.  But  there  was  no 
Schleiermacher  to  counsel  wisdom,  and  the  prevailing 
sentiment  being  rationalistic,  the  proposition  for  a  crimi- 
nal inquiry  was  approved,  and  on  the  depositions  of 
three  witnesses,  who  were  de  facto  the  informers,  referred 
to  the  courts.     These  three  witnesses  were  : 

1.  Fink,  whose  character  has  been  sufficiently  de- 
scribed, and  whom  Schon,  who  plumed  himself  on  the 
use  of  significant  epithets,  called  "  a  twister," 

2.  Sachs,  also  described,  dubbed  by  Schon  "  a  snap- 
ping cur,  catching  your  leg  from  behind." 

3.  The  Rural  Councillor  von  Hake,  whom  Schon  de- 
sired to  communicate  his  impressions  of  the  "  Ebelian 
sect,"  was  a  man  who,  a  short  time  before  the  suit  had 
been  begun,  had  become  known  to  him  under  these  cir- 
cumstances :  Hake  had  betrayed  a  girl  on  pretence  that 
he  was  about  to  be  divorced  from  his  wife  and  would 
marry  her,  but  having  accomplished  his  purpose,  dis- 
carded her,  so  that  the  poor  victim  appealed  to  Schon, 
the   governor,  for  protection.     The  official  protector  of 

*  See  pp.  79-82. 


158  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

outraged  innocence  chose  that  infamous  seducer  as  his 
third  witness  or  informer. 

It  is  proper  to  state  here  that  the  foregoing  details  are 
the  resu7ne  of  the  official  record,  and  that  every  word 
employed  may  be  verified  by  it.  By  far  the  fullest  ac- 
count of  the  whole  matter  will  be  found  in  the  exhaustive 
work  of  Count  Kanitz,  of  which  this  is  the  full  title  : 
Aufkldrung  nach  Actenquellen  ilber  den  1835— 1842,  {71 
Kojtigsbergj  in  Preicssen,  gefilhrten  Religionsprocess  fur 
Welt-ujid  Kirchen-Geschichte,  von  Ernst  Graf  en  von  Ka- 
nitz, Koniglich  Preussischem  Tribunalsrath,  A.  D.,  Basel 
und  Ludwigsburg,  1862,  i  vol.  4to,  pp.  viii.,  468  (The 
Religious  Suit  Conducted  at  Konigsberg,  in  Prussia,  from 
1835  to  1842,  Elucidated  by  the  Official  Record  as  a 
Contribution  to  Secular  and  Church  History,  etc.).  This 
masterpiece,  by  the  concurrent  testimony  of  all  true  his- 
torians (no  matter  how  differently  the  matter  was  re- 
garded by  some  at  the  time  while  the  record  was  kept 
secret)  now  received  as  authentic,  is  the  standing  monu- 
ment of  his  indefatigable  perseverance,  invincible  zeal, 
and  all-conquering  friendship,  whereby  he  has  succeeded 
in  proving  with  overwhelming  conclusiveness  on  irre- 
fragable evidence  that  said  suit  was  conducted  in  viola- 
tion of  law,  that  the  charges  brought  against  the  accused 
were  baseless,  barefaced  falsehoods,  that  the  sentences 
found  against  them  were  utterly  unjust,  and  that  Ebel 
and  Diestel  were  bright  and  shining  lights,  conspicuous 
for  virtue,  spirituality,  and  faithfulness,  whose  lofty  con- 
ceptions of  the  Christian  life,  and  apostolical  earnestness 
in  commending  and  upholding  the  necessity  of  applying 
Christian  precepts  to  every  relation  of  life,  were  the  real 
cause  of  the  bitter  hatred  and  persecution  meted  out  to 
them. 


THE   RELIGIOUS   SUIT.  1 59 

The  writer,  with  limited  space  at  his  command  over 
which  the  vast  material  has  to  be  spread,  from  a  just  re- 
gard to  symmetry  and  proportion,  feels  that  by  far  the 
best  account  that  can  be  given  to  the  reader  for  the  pur- 
pose of  a  general  survey  of  the  case,  is  a  brief  synopsis  of 
the  Count's  work,  preceded  by  a  translation  of  the  testi- 
monial *  addressed  to  him  by  the  Bench  at  the  time  of  his 
retirement  from  office,  produced  here  for  the  purpose  of 
informing  those  to  whom  that  Christian  nobleman  is  un- 
known of  the  opinion  entertained  of  him  by  his  colleagues, 
and  of  the  credit  to  be  attached  to  his  statements  : 

*'  To  the  Royal  Prussian  Tribunal  Councillor  Count  von 
Kaniiz  : 

"Your  officially  communicated  intention  of  leaving  our  col- 
lege, in  which  during  a  very  long  series  of  years  you  have  filled 
so  distinguished  a  place,  imposes  upon  us  the  painful  duty  of 
conveying  to  you  our  sentiments  in  a  few  valedictory  words. 

"Your  example  as  a  judge  of  true  independence,  fidelity, 
and  conscientiousness  should  animate  our  imitation,  and  your 
pattern  of  sincere  affability  in  your  intercourse  with  us,  your 
colleagues,  have  drawn  and  secured  to  you  the  undivided 
love  and  esteem  of  us  all,  a  love  and  esteem  which,  next  to 
the  cheering  consciousness  of  duty  faithfully  performed  in 
your  own  heart,  as  we  know  it,  represent  the  noblest  recom- 
pense of  reward. 

"  These  our  sentiments,  which  will  ever  accompany  you 
through  life,  render  our  official  farewell  greeting  peculiarly 
painful,  as  they  impress  us  with  the  magnitude  of  the  loss  we 
are  about  to  sustain. 

"We  beg  you,  along  with  this  assurance,  to  accept  our 
profound  gratitude  for  the  important  and  successful  part  you 
have  had  in  our  joint  judicial  labors,  and  for  the  urbane  con- 

*  The  reader  will  please  observe  that  it  was  given  several  years 
after  the  termination  of  the  suit. 


l6o  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

siderateness  which  you  have  ever  accorded  to  our  collegiate 
body,  while  we  trust  that  we  may  hereafter  be  privileged  to 
enjoy  the  continuance  of  your  good  will. 

"  May  a  gracious  Providence  very  soon  restore  your  health, 
impaired  by  meritorious  zeal  in  the  service  of  the  fatherland, 
and  grant  you  for  many  years  to  come  unbroken  and  un- 
clouded enjoyment  of  independent  repose  and  of  happiness 
securely  founded  on  a  warfare  worthily  carried  on  for  truth 
and  justice. 

"  The  Chancellor    and  President,  the  Councillors  and 

Assessors  of  the  Royal  Tribunal  of  the  Kingdom 

of  Prussia. 
•'V.  Wegnern.  Tiedmann.  Feege.  Fischer. 

RiCHELOT.  SCHMIEDIKE.  LYMPIUS. 

Ulrich.  Kuhr.  Vock. 

SiMSON.  Neumann. 

Charisius.         Hoyer.  Hartung. 

"  Konigsberg,  the  30th  December,  1845." 

The  preface  of  the  Attfkldrung^  recapitulating  the 
Count's  connection  with  the  suit,  and  furnishing  certain 
data  essential  to  the  proper  understanding  of  the  case, 
runs  :  "  The  author  of  this  work,  whose  outward  and  in- 
ward life  is  closely  interwoven  with  the  affair  round 
which  revolves  the  suit  illuminated  in  its  pages,  felt  it  to 
be  his  duty  from  the  commencement  of  the  judicial  pro- 
ceedings to  co-operate  towards  the  establishment  of  the 
truth.  His  testimony  having  been  declined  by  the  Con- 
sistory,* he  submitted  a  statement  to  His  Majesty  Fred- 
eric William  TIL,  bearing  date  October  i8th,  1835, 
offering  to  bring  his  accurate  knowledge  of  the  accused 
and  their  accusers,  *and  the  motives  of  their  accusations 
to  the  cognizance   of  the  proper  authorities,  in  order  to 

*  See  p.  153. 


THE   RELIGIOUS   SUIT.  l6l 

obviate  precipitate  action  to  be  apprehended  from  the 
notorious  adverse  leanings  of  several  high  functionaries 
of  State." 

This  led  to  the  result,  that  the  body  charged  with  the 
investigation  of  the  case  was  required  in  a  cabinet  order, 
dated  November  7,  1835,"  to  request  of  Count  Kanitz  the 
information  (or  as  expressed  in  another  part  of  the  royal 
mandate  the  explaiiatioii)  which,  according  to  his  state- 
ment, would  serve  to  explain  the  true  nature  of  the  case, 
and  shed  light  on  the  individuality  of  the  persons  in- 
volved in  the  same." 

"  The  Minister  of  Justice,  moreover,  on  the  27th  day  of  the 
same  month,  made  it  obligatory  on  the  court  conducting  the 
inquiry,  '  forthwith  and  carefully  to  comply  with  the  execu- 
tion of  this  supreme  command.' 

"The  author,  however,  enjoyed  only  a  very  short  time  the 
privilege  of  satisfying  the  royal  command  ;  for  as  early  as 
March  21,  1836,  he  was  again  denied  the  use  of  the  minutes 
specifying  the  charges  indispensable  to  the  elucidation  of  the 
case,  as  well  as  access  to  the  record  of  the  subsequent  trans- 
actions, which  had  been  accorded  to  him  since  February  i, 
of  the  same  year. 

"Unsuccessful  both  in  setting  aside  the  lateral  influences 
which  had  occasioned  the  said  denial  (to  be  detailed  at  the 
proper  place),  and  in  his  efforts  to  prevent  certain  illegalities, 
his  co-operation  looking  to  the  establishment  of  the  truth  had 
thenceforth  to  be  confined  to  his  testimony  given  before  the 
court. 

*'At  that  time  the  elucidation  bore  on  matters  of  fact, 
which  have  become  superfluous  since  the  publication  of  the 
final  sentence  in  the  suit  continued  to  the  close  of  the  year 
1841,  according  to  which  the  accused  were  acquitted  of  all 
criminal  charges,  and  condemned  for  holding  a  philosophico- 
theologicaX privafe  view  and  the  alleged  dissemination  of  the 
same.     It  is  therefore  all  the  more  necessary  at  this  present 


1 62  FAITH  VICTORIOUS. 

time,  that  the  official  record  should  be  made  to  illuminate 
the  influences  which  rendered  it  possible  that  in  this  nine- 
teenth century  courts  oi  justice  did  not  only  pretend  to  con- 
demn religious  and  philosophical  views,  but  actually  under- 
took to  pronounce  their  colloquial  communication  as  criine^ 
and  to  punish  the  persons  concerned,  with  deposition  from 
the  ministry. 

"  This  work  seemed  to  be  prescribed  to  the  author  in  virtue 
of  his  intimate  relation  to  the  affair,  and  of  his  knowledge  of 
the  judicial  record,  insight  of  which  was  accorded  to  him  in 
the  first  instance  by  royal  mandate,  and  subsequently  by  the 
counsel  for  the  defence.  But  its  execution  was  impossible  to 
him  while  the  crowded  business  of  official  duties  absorbed 
all  his  energies.  Not  until  the  impaired  condition  of  his 
health,  caused  by  the  toil  ot  many  years'  labor,  compelled  him 
to  resign  his  office  in  the  service  of  the  State,  did  he  find  the 
necessary  leisure,  and  thanks  to  the  invigorating  influence  of 
the  milder  climate  in  which  he  had  taken  up  his  abode,  the 
needed  strength  to  compile  from  former  extracts  the  official 
data  essential  to  the  elucidation  of  the  case. 

"  The  author,  in  memory  of  the  prince,  whose  sense  of 
justice  directed  him  to  diffuse  light  on  this  matter,  hereby 
fulfils  the  intent  of  the  royal  mandate  in  making  the  record 
reveal  the  truth,  and  satisfies  the  promptings  of  his  own 
mind  to  supply  proof  that  the  termination  of  this  affair  in  a 
result  at  once  illegal,  insensate  and  immoral  cannot  be  laid 
to  the  charge  of  the  humane  Prussian  law,  to  the  administra- 
tion of  which  he  had  for  more  than  forty  years  consecrated 
all  his  powers,  but  rather  to  the  non-observance  and  trans- 
gression of  the  provisions  of  that  law,  whereby  in  the  con- 
duct of  this  affair  justice  has  in  various  ways  been  outraged 
and  trodden  under  foot,  the  liberty  of  conscience  violated, 
and  things  sacred  delivered  to  vulgar  contempt." 

The  work  consists  of  three  parts,  viz. :  I.  Prelimina- 
ries OF  THE  Suit  ;    II.  History  of  the  Suit  ;    III. 


THE   RELIGIOUS   SUIT.  163 

Results  of  the  Suit.  Of  these  the  first  part  has  been 
so  fully  and  exhaustively  delineated  in  the  preceding 
pages,  that  a  further  synopsis  of  it  would  be  simple  repe- 
tition ;  the  same  applies  to  the  first  subdivision  of  the 
second  part  entitled  i.  The  encroachments  of  the  ecclesiasti- 
cal authorities^  which  are  duly  chronicled  in  the  beginning 
of  this  chapter.  The  synopsis  begins,  therefore,  with  2. 
The  precipitate  iiiterference  of  the  courts  and  its  conse- 
quences^ which  Count  Kanitz  proves  from  the  transgression 
of  these  precepts  of  the  Prussian  code.  a.  The  judge 
must  strictly  confine  himself  to  the  limits  of  the  law ;  b. 
Only  facts  can  be  submitted  to  his  judgment ;  c.  He 
must  maintain  the  equality  of  all  persons  before  the  law ; 
and  summarizes  as  follows  :  The  Prussian  criminal  code 
prescribes,  §§  106,  in,  116,  that  the  informers  be  heard 
in  court  before  inquiries  are  instituted;  disregarded. 

§§  109,  112,  that  the  origin  and  cause  of  the  charges 
be  inquired  into  ;   disregarded. 

§§  112,  115,  compel  the  judge,  as  a  preliminary,  to 
inquire  into  the  relations  of  the  accuser  to  the  accused, 
and  the  credibility  of  the  former  ;  wholly  077iitted. 

§§  108,  no,  expressly  enjoin  the  utmost  caution  in 
maintaining  inviolate  the  good  report  of  the  accused  ; 
disregarded.  Disregard  of  these  legal  precepts  for  the 
benefit  of  the  accused  led  to  a  number  of  other  illegal 
acts,  among  which  should  be  noted  the  following  : 

The  Criminal  Directory  sets  forth  in  72  paragraphs 
the  manner  how  \ki^  facts  of  the  case  must  be  established  ; 
omitted. 

In  consequence  of  this  omission  the  prescript  mode  of 
procedure  was  entirely  reversed,  and  the  accused  were 
forced  to  submit  for  months  to  inquiries  concerning  a 
non-extant   corpus  delicti ;   the   dignity   of   justice    was 


l64  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

outraged  by  a  search  for  an  offence  not  established  by 
facts  ;  the  mmutes  of  the  accusation  were  construed  con- 
trary to  law  and  reason  :  the  directions  of  the  supreme 
law-giver  (the  king)  for  the  elucidation  of  the  affair  were 
rendered  nugatory  by  sundry  intrigues. 

But  this  was  not  all,  for  these  transgressions  of  the 
law  entailed  the  most  disastrous  consequences  : 

a.  As  affecting  the  congregations  of  the  accused  by  shak- 
ing their  confidence  in  the  justice  of  the  Government. 

b.  As  affecting  the  sanctity  of  the  family  by  trampling 
under  foot  the  ties  of  blood  and  decorum  in  requiring  parents 
and  children,  husbands  and  wives,  to  testify  on  oath  against 
each  other. 

c.  As  affecting  the  public  welfare  in  giving  license  to  un- 
bridled passion,  in  favoring  defamatory  promulgations  and 
suppressing  their  refutation,  to  the  prejudice  of  the  public 
morals,  and  the  encouragement  of  unprincipled  writers  to 
abuse  the  press. 

3.    The  illegal  conduct  of  the  exammatio7i. 

The  Prussian  criminal  code  (§  274)  requires  the  judge 
to  be  as  careful  to  ascertain  the  innocence  as  to  estab- 
lish the  guilt  of  the  accused,  and  to  define  clearly  the 
legal  concept  of  the  crime,  with  reference  to  the  modifi- 
cations of  the  penal  law  affecting  the  same. 

Nothing  was  done  to  define  the  legal  concept  of  "  a 
sect,"  although  it  had  been  intimated  by  the  Chancellor 
von  Wegnern  "  that  the  circle  of  friends  described  as  a 
'  society '  ( Verein,  lit.  union)  could  not  be  regarded 
in  the  light  of  a  sect,  because  that  required  formal 
separation  from  the  established  church,  and  the  mem- 
bers of  the  alleged  society  had  never  avowed  such 
separation,  but  on  the  contrary  maintained  continuous 
connection  with    the    same."      The   examining   officer, 


THE    RELIGIOUS   SUIT.  165 

moreover,  officially  put  it  on  record  that  "  the  status  of  a 
sect  imports  a  total  separation  from  the  dominant 
church."  Instead  of  acting  upon  these  cautions,  and  of 
limiting  the  inquiry  to  the  question  whether  these  criteria 
applied  to  the  case  in  hand,  /.  <?.,  whether  the  alleged 
"  society "  was  a  sect,  that  was  taken  for  granted,  and 
the  inquiry  was  allowed  to  assume  inordinate  dimensions, 
and  to  wander  into  illicit  regions  by 

"  Hunting  for  grounds  of  suspicion  in  all  the  provinces  of 
Prussia,  and  in  almost  every  country  of  German  speech,  and 
weaving  together  gossip  wholly  irrelevant  to  the  case,  and 
utterly  unconnected  with  the  accused  and  their  friends." — 
"  Fables  and  curiosa,  collected  in  this  way,  became  the  sub- 
ject of  judicial  proceedings  and  sworn  examinations,  and 
kept  the  public  in  breathless  suspense  from  November,  1835, 
to  August,  1836.  Idlers  failed  not  to  augment  the  material 
thus  furnished  with  the  inventions  of  a  vulgar  and  lascivious 
imagination,  which  were  eagerly  published  by  a  frivolous 
press.  No  relation  was  spared  ;  all  ordinary  decorum  was 
set  aside  ;  the  sanctity  of  the  family  was  ruthlessly  invaded, 
and  all  civil  and  social  relations  were  rummaged  by  the 
intrusiveness  of  criminal  interference." 

All  attempts  to  stay  these  degrading  illegalities  were 
unavailing ;  unsubstantiated  rumors  were,  contrary  to 
law,  made  the  basis  of  official  inquiry,  even  under  oath  ; 
opinions,  which  the  law  accords  only  to  experts,  and  to 
them  only  when  the  logical  connection  is  established, 
were  required  and  accepted  from  utterly  unqualified 
persons  on  irrelevant  matters  ;  documentary  evidence 
(restricted  under  the  law  to  matters  germane  to  the 
subject  of  inquiry,  and  bearing  on  the  decision)  of  the 
most  dubious  and  unlawful  character  was  received  ; 
the  legal  provision    that    testimony  must  be  based   on 


1 66  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

actual  knowledge  of  facts  obtained  by  the  witness  from 
observation  of  the  senses,  was  wantonly  disregarded,  and 
conjectures  and  presumptions  were  illegally  received  as 
evidence.  In  the  important  matter  of  the  credibility  of 
witnesses,  the  record  shows  that  a  witness,  whose  repu- 
tation as  an  immoral  man  is  established  by  documentary 
proof,  was  allowed  to  testify  on  subjects  requiring  mor- 
ally pure  perceptions.  The  law  forbids  the  introduction 
of  all  irrelevant  matter  into  the  examination  of  the 
accused  and  of  witnesses,  especially  that  of  suggestions 
(/.  <?.,  of  questions  containing  the  matter  that  ought  to  be 
ascertained  by  the  reply),  and  of  captious  questions 
(/.  <?.,  questions  inducing  the  witness  to  say  more  than 
he  intended,  or  misleading  or  confusing  him)  ;  all  the 
questions  submitted  to  the  accused  and  the  witnesses 
were  full  of  such  suggestions  and  captious  features.  The 
provisions  of  the  law  requiring  "  the  witness  to  testify, 
fully  and  truly,  and  if  possible,  in  his  own  words  in  the 
first  person,"  was  violated,  and  witnesses  examined  on 
written  essays,  even  on  essays  composed  for  them  by 
others,  and  the  sanctity  of  the  oath  so  outrageously 
disregarded,  that  a  witness  was  actually  required  to 
testify  on  oath  "  whether  seven  persons  whose  names 
were  given,  had  been  the  candlesticks  in  the  Revelation 
of  St.  John  ? "  The  confrontation  (/.  e.,  the  act  of 
bringing  face  to  face  two  persons  whose  testimony  on 
the  same  subject  conflicts)  throughout  the  trial  (if 
trial  it  can  be  called)  was  just  as  loose  and  out- 
rageous a  mockery  and  scandal  as  the  matter  of  the 
oaths.  The  confrontation  of  the  accuser  and  the  ac- 
cused was  under  the  Prussian  code  reserved  in  excep- 
tional cases  as  a  kind  of  last  resort  for  getting  at  the 
truth  ;  in  this  suit  the  court  unlawfully  constrained  the 


THE   RELIGIOUS   SUIT.  167 

accused  to  submit  eight  times  to  this  unnecessary  and 
absurd  procedure,  because  from  the  very  nature  of  the 
case  it  could  not  probably  promote  the  interests  of 
truth.  The  confrontations  of  the  witnesses,  likewise, 
were  marked  by  illegalities  and  glaring  partiality.* 
While  the  prosecution  was  unduly  favored,  unlawful 
obstacles  were  placed  in  the  way  of  the  defence,  and  the 
whole  inquiry  is  branded  by  Count  Kanitz  as  a  pattern 
showing  how  a  criminal  inquiry  should  not  be  conducted. 
The  Prussian  criminal  process  leaves  it  optional  with 
the  defendant  either  to  write  his  own  defence  or  to  em- 
ploy a  defender.  The  accused  were  now  required  (June 
2  and  6)  to  name  a  defender  within  a  week,  and  to  hand 
in  their  defence  within  a  month,  and  subsequently  (July 
16,  1837)  within  a  fortnight.  The  documents  had  accu- 
mulated to  such  formidable  dimensions  that  the  time 
allotted  for  the  preparation  of  the  defence  was  barely 
sufficient  to  peruse  these  "  Acts "  i^Acten)  in  the  most 
superficial  manner.  The  legally  x^aogrixz^A  favor  defen- 
sionis  was  disallowed,  and  the  action  of  the  court  was 
a  grim  satire  on  that  just  and  merciful  provision  of  the 
law.  The  accused  chose  as  their  defender  a  legal  gen- 
tleman who,  having  just  arrived  at  Konigsberg,  stood 
quite  neutral  to  all  the  parties — Oberlandesgerichtsrath 
Crelinger — to  whom,  for  the  purpose  of  preparing  the 
defence,  all  the  "  acts  " — /.  ^.,  the  minutes  of  all  the  pro- 
ceedings from  beginning  to  end,  without  any  pretence  of 
arrangement,  in  a  state  of  bewildering  confusion — had  to 
be  forwarded.  This  distinguished  jurist  went  at  the 
herculean  task  with  indomitable  energy,  and  although  he 
succeeded  in  obtaining  more  space  than  had  originally 

*  Aufkldrung,  p.  215  sqq. 


l68  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

been  granted  to  the  accused,  he  was  continually  annoyed 
by  petty  chicanery  on  the  part  of  the  court,  intentionally 
put  forth  to  throw  every  possible  difficulty  in  the  way  of 
the  defence.  The  details  of  the  defence  need  not  de- 
tain us,  but  in  the  absence  of  these  as  well  as  of  other  un- 
necessary particulars,  it  may  interest  the  general  reader 
to  peruse  a  private  letter  of  Crelinger  to  a  friend  at 
Halle,  written  years  after  his  official  connection  with  the 
case  had  ceased,  in  answer  to  certain  inquiries  on  the 
subject  addressed  to  him  : 

"Allow  me,"  he  wrote  in  1845,  "  to  state,  in  the  first  place, 
that  the  said  invective  [the  term  '  Mucker '  ],  as  far  as  it  found 
its  way  into  the  public,  is  due  to  a  lithographed  circular  filled 
with  the  most  revolting  abuse,  in  which  the  persons  in  ques- 
tion were  confounded  with  a  party  whose  dead  orthodoxy  dons 
the  livery  of  sanctimonious  cant.  That  offensive  term  is  not 
so  much  as  mentioned  in  the  '  criminal  minutes,'  nor  has  the 
court  ventured  to  make  any  inquiries  in  that  direction.  That 
lithographed  letter  w^as  sent  all  over  Germany.  I  myself 
saw  it  at  Breslau  during  the  winter  of  1835-6.  When,  in  the 
spring  of  1836,  I  entered  upon  my  professional  career  in  this 
city,  I  became  officially  connected  with  those  persons  so 
hardly  assailed.  ...  It  were  wrong  to  conceal  from  you 
that  the  opinion  I  had  formed  of  my  clients,  under  the  domi- 
nant influence  of  that  lithographic  epistle,  was  not  free  from 
prejudice,  and  injurious  to  them.  But  how  different  were  the 
impressions  derived  from  personal  intercourse  with  these  so- 
called  sectaries.  So  far  from  being  hypocritical  (lit.  head- 
droopers)  and  '  muckisch,'  I  found  them  in  every  respect 
pursuing  lofty  moral  and  intellectual  aims.  Their  candor 
and  love  of  truthfulness  were  singularly  striking,  especially 
when,  as  their  legal  adviser,  I  recommended  that  some  par- 
ticulars for  the  accomplishment  of  certain  ends  should  either 
be  suppressed  or  at  least  be  presented  in  a  manner  not  ex- 
actly in  agreement  with  the  facts  of  the  case,  which  is  not  by 


THE   RELIGIOUS   SUIT.  1 69 

any  means  disallowed  in  the  handling  of  lawsuits,  and  seemed 
to  me  necessary;  but  all  my  representations  of  the  propriety 
of  that  course,  and  of  the  legal  disadvantages,  nay,  of  actual 
danger  to  my  clients  that  would  or  might  ensue  from  their 
rejection  of  that  advice,  proved  unavailing.  The  practice  ot 
a  legal  adviser  necessitates  caution,  which  in  most  instances 
is  not  only  approved  but  desired  by  the  parties  to  a  suit.  I 
was  therefore  simply  amazed  at  an  exhibition  of  veracity  re- 
gardless of  consequences,  which  I  have  rarely  met  in  men  of 
undoubted  integrity,  but  never  in  the  same  degree  as  in  those 
my  clients.  I  need  hardly  add  that  it  filled  me  with  the 
highest  respect  and  esteem  for  them.  ,  .  As  I  began  to 
understand  all  the  bearings  of  their  case,  I  perceived  that 
their  determination  would  rouse  opposition  and  enmity  all 
around,  but  especially  from  a  party  then  incipient,  but  now, 
alas,  dominant,  seeking  to  make  up  for  the  want  of  spiritual 
and  moral  excellence  by  imaginary  Christian  phrase  and  a 
debasing  trifling  with  religious  subjects,  which,  by  the  adroit 
use  of  sundry  co-operating  circumstances,  brought  about  the 
criminal  inquisition  of  1835-6.  It  is  not  improbable  that  that 
lithographed  circular  originated  with  the  same  party.  .  .  . 
You  want  finally  to  know  if  judgment  has  been  pronounced  ? 
There  has  ;  the  second  and  final  sentence  ot  the  Court  of  Ap- 
peal was  given  in  1842,  resulting  in  the  deprivation  of  the 
two  clergymen,  because  their  philosophical  views  of  religious 
subjects  were  not  approved  ;  it  was  therefore  an  inquisitorial 
sentence,  at  the  time  at  least  unexpected  and  diametrically 
opposed  to  the  liberty  of  thought  and  belief  guaranteed  by  the 
law.  ...  A  procedure  which  makes  the  strictly  private 
views  of  an  accused  person  the  basis  of  punishment  cannot 
be  denominated  otherwise  than  persecution.  ...  On  the 
other  hand,  the  court  acquitted  the  accused  of  the  charges  of 
sectarism  and  of  the  immoral  tendencies  publicly  rumored, 
and  the  second  sentence  emphatically  rebuked  the  extrava- 
gant distortions  of  the  press  on  this  point,  and  public  notice 
thereof  has  been  given  in  an  article  printed  in  No.  80  of  the 
Allgemeine  Leipzigcr  Zeitung  for  1842.     .     .     .     You  per- 


170  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

ceive  from  this  simple  answer  of  your  questions  tliat  the 
affair  belongs  to  those  which  essentially  concern  the  interests 
of  right  and  truth." 

The  third  part  of  the  "Aufklarung"  treats  of  the 
Results  of  the  Suit.  It  is  also  subdivided  into  three 
sections  : 

1.  The  unmasking  of  the  accusers  and  their  ivitnesses. 
This  section  wrought  by  the  disregard  of  the  monitions 
of  conscience  reveals  a  warning  picture  of  moral  de- 
vastation in  men,  who,  at  one  time  receptive  to  nobler 
impressions,  had  chosen  the  better  part.  The  melancholy 
official  record  proves  that  the  conduct  and  testimony  of 
the  seven  accusers  named  in  the  sentences  were  com- 
promised not  only  by  their  own  statements,  unsuccessfully 
defended  in  the  sentences,  but  by  the  sworn  testimony  of 
the  seven  witnesses  for  the  defence,  as  well  as  by  the 
comparison  of  the  argument  of  the  accusation  (prosecu- 
tion) with  that  of  the  defence,  in  a  manner  at  once  de- 
structive of  their  credibility  and  of  the  argumentation  of 
the  sentences,  seeking  to  uphold  their  credibility  in  the 
interests  of  the  prosecution,  although  the  prosecution 
refused  to  credit  many  of  their  sworn  statements.  The 
irresistible  inference  of  this  exposure  is  most  damaging 
to  the  judicial  integrity  of  the  sentences,  as  will  appear 
more  clearly  from  the  analysis  of  their  reasons  to  be 
given  below. 

2 .  The  degradation  of  crimi?ial  justice  in  the  first  sentence 
is  demonstrated  both  in  the  parts  relating  to  the  acquittal, 
and  in  those  relating  to  the  condemnation  of  the  accused. 
In  order  to  put  this  clearly,  it  is  necessary  to  remember 
that  the  first  judicial  sentence  in  the  enumeration  of  its 
reasons  absolutely  rejects  any  and  every  criminal  charge 
preferred  against  the  accused,  except  that  of  sectarism, 


THE   RELIGIOUS   SUIT.  171 

and  declares  them  to  be  utterly  unfounded  ;  that  is,  it 
acquits  them,  and  yet  in  spite  of  this  actual  acquittal, 
fails  to  declare  such  acquittal  in  the  tenor  (as  it  is  techni- 
cally called)  of  the  sentence.  But  the  law  (§  488)  ex- 
pressly requires  that  the  crime  of  which  the  ^person  ac- 
cused is  acquitted,  or  for  which  he  is  punished,  be  ex- 
plicitly named  in  the  judgment,  /.  ^.,  the  tenor.  This 
failure  was  a  crying  act  of  injustice,  because  the  accused, 
though  acquitted  of  every  criminal  charge  and  condemned 
only  for  (the  unproved)  allegation  of  having  founded  a 
sect,  were  not  formally  declared  innocent  of  those  charges, 
and  further  injured  in  the  consequent  interpretation  of 
the  sentence  by  the  public  that  they  were  condemned  for 
the  commission  of  the  offences  falsely  charged  against 
them.  In  other  words,  the  court  had  found  them  in- 
nocent and  yet  failed  to  declare  them  innocent.  This 
failure  on  the  part  of  the  court  to  specify  in  the  sentence 
the  innocence  of  the  accused  was  a  wrong  opposed  to 
the  evidence,  to  law  and  to  logic,  and  it  would  be  diffi- 
cult to  brand  it  more  effectually  than  is  done  in  the  dig- 
nified language  and  terrible  logic  of  the  "  Aufklarung." 

The  three  points  just  named,  viz.:  the  evidence,  the 
law,  and  logic  on  which  a  judicial  sentence  must  be 
founded,  and  for  which  the  judge  is  responsible  to  the 
accused  and  to  public  opinion,  complete,  according  to 
the  "  Aufklarung,"  the  degradation  of  criminal  justice  in 
the  conde7nnatory  part  of  the  sentence.  The  enormities 
in  this  respect  almost  beggar  belief,  for  in  the  first  place 
the  record  proves  that  the  accused  never  intended  to 
found  a  sect  and  never  did  found  one  ;  in  the  second 
place,  neither  the  criminal  code  nor  the  common  law 
of  Prussia  contains  a  law  under  which  the  accused  clergy- 
men  could   be   proceeded   against,   and  that  Wollner's 


1/2  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

notorious  religious  edict  of  1788,  directed  against  neology 
(repudiated  and  opposed  by  the  accused  clergymen),  and 
abrogated  in  1794  by  the  common  law,  and  in  1798  by 
cabinet  order,  was  illegally  and  in  defiance  of  logic  and 
common  sense  perverted  and  misapplied  to  the  case  of 
two  men  who  dared  to  entertain  a  private  philosophical 
view  on  the  origin  of  the  world,  etc.,  not  shared  by  the 
dominant  theologians  at  Konigsberg,  and  last,  not  least, 
that  the  corpus  jiwis  of  the  Roman  empire  was  ransacked 
for  certain  provisions  made  under  Valentinian  and 
Marcian,  fourteen  hundred  years  before,  against  the  he- 
retical sects  of  the  period,  and  made  the  basis  for  finding 
Ebel  and  Diestel  guilty  of  having  founded  a  heretical 
sect.  Having  perused  the  atrocious  nonsense  raked  up, 
twisted,  misapplied  and  tortured  into  fitting  by  those 
remarkable  custodians  of  the  law  for  the  administration 
of  justice,  the  writer  can  think  only  of  two  parallels,  the 
one  belonging  to  the  realm  of  fable — the  wolf  and  the 
lamb — and  the  other,  the  history  of  the  Inquisition,  and 
feels  constrained  to  admire  the  extraordinary  and  digni- 
fied moderation  of  the  concluding  paragraphs  of  this 
section  of  the  "  Aufklarung  :  "  ''  In  presence  of  all  the 
particulars  furnished  in  the  preceding  pages  demonstrat- 
ing that  the  sentence  in  question  has  with  a  daring  stroke 
of  the  pen  violated  not  only  the  truth  as  established  by 
evidence,  but  also,  the  laws  of  right  and  reason  ;  remem- 
bering moreover  that  only  a  portion  of  those  violations 
has  been  denounced,  as  it  lay  beyond  the  limits  and  ends 
of  this  work  to  furnish  an  exhaustive  criticism  of  this 
sentence  which  would  have  exhausted  the  patience  of 
the  reader,— remembering  all  this,  the  conviction  is  ir- 
resistible that  it  is  impossible  to  conceive  a  more  huiniliat- 
ing  degradation  of  the  administration  of  criminal  justice  in 


THE   RELIGIOUS   SUIT.  173 

Prussia  than  the  fact  that  such  a  document,  duly  authen- 
ticated by  the  confirmatory  formula  V.  R.  W.  {von 
Rechtswegen^  i.  c,  because  of  right)  and  the  signature  of 
a  respected  court  of  justice,  regarded  as  impartial,  could 
have  been  published  to  the  world,  without  pretending  to 
distribute  the  degree  of  responsibility  of  the  different 
individuals  who  "because  of  right  and  because  of  wrong" 
participated  in  its  production,  the  most  prejudiced  will 
be  forced  to  confess  that  this  sentence  is  responsible  for 
the  commission  of  a  crime  vastly  greater  than  that  which 
it  pretended  had  been  committed,  and  that  it  furnishes 
an  array  of  facts  not  by  any  means  redounding  to  the 
honor  of  its  authors. 

"Church  history  furnishes,  it  is  true,  examples  in  bygone 
ages  of  condemnatory  judgments  in  matters  of  faitli,  whereby 
the  benefactors  of  the  race  have  been  sacrificed  to  party 
hatred  because  they  opposed  the  universal  corruption,  and 
false  witnesses  charged  them  with  some  transgression  or 
crime  ;  but  it  cannot  instance  another  judicial  sentence 
drawn  up  in  this  century  marked  at  all  decisive  points  by  an 
utter  disregard  of  truth,  law,  and  logic,  and  unable  to  pro- 
duce an  offence  punishable  in  law,  pronounced  a  judgment 
of  condemnation  on  views  and  opinions,  and  ruthlessly  smote 
in  the  face  the  advanced  civilization  and  tendency  of  the  age 
for  the  purpose  of  crushing  out  a  ministerial  activity  fitted 
truly  and  lastingly  to  meet  the  wants  of  our  time. 

"  This  sentence  is  and  remains,  therefore,  a  significant 
document,  illustrative  of  the  danger  accruing  to  right  and 
morality  by  any  and  every  deviation  from  law.  The  futility 
of  its  attempted  perversion  of  truth  into  untruth  is  also  an 
attestation  of  the  purity  and  rectitude  of  the  true  Christian 
life,  which,  in  spite  of  outward  oppression  and  in  proportion 
to  the  violence  meted  out  to  it  by  the  powers  of  the  world, 
always  has  and  ever  will  overcome  the  world." 


174  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

This  "  sentence,"  as  well  as  the  final  one,  already  fre- 
quently referred  to,  cannot  be  given  to  the  reader  in  this 
volume,  for  their  production  would  necessitate  about  two 
additional  volumes  of  the  size  of  this  ;  the  fact  is  that 
the  two  sentences  cover  about  a  thousand  folio  pages  in 
manuscript,  and  this  solitary  fact  may  suffice  to  illustrate 
the  difference  between  the  old  system  of  criminal  pro- 
cedure in  private  and  the  new  system  of  public  trials 
(in  Germany).  One  single  word  in  case  of  acquittal,  and 
only  two  words  in  case  of  condemnation  are  needed  now, 
where  a  thousand  pages  of  foolscap  were  required  forty 
years  ago.  If  the  case  of  Ebel  and  Diestel  were  extant 
now,  no  grand  jury  in  England  or  America  would  dare 
to  indict  them,  and,  should  an  indictment  be  made,  the 
case  could  not  be  tried  at  all,  and  would  be  quashed  the 
first  day. 

The  third  and  last  section  of  this  part  bears  the  title  : 
3.    The  condemnation  of  the  whole  suit  by  the  final  sentence. 

The  judgment  of  the  Criminal  Senate  of  the  Kammer- 
gericht  at  Berlin,  drawn  up  March  28,  1839,  and  pub- 
lished five  months  later,  August  30,  1839,  was  to  the 
effect  that  the  two  accused  clergymen — 

"  Be  deprived  of  their  office  and  declared  unfit  for  any  pub- 
lic office,  for  intentional  violation  of  their  duty,  and  that, 
moveover.  Dr.  Ebel,  for  having  founded  a  sect,  be  removed 
to  some  public  insdtuUon  and  detained  there  until  he  have 
given  proof  of  amendment." 

From  this  judgment  Ebel  and  Diestel  appealed  to  the 
Senate  of  Appeal  of  the  Supreme  Court,  and  their  de- 
fender in  the  first  instance.  Dr.  Crelinger,  drew  up  a 
lucid  brief,  clearly  showing  that  the  "  Acts  "  contained 
abundant    data    disproving    all    the    charges   preferred 


THE    RELIGIOUS   SUIT,  I75 

against  his  clients,  and  moving  upon  the  recital  of  those 
data  their  full  acquittal,  and  sabmitting  that  the  corre- 
spondence  of  the  Consistory  and  of  Schon  with  the  Min- 
isterium  at  Berlin  and  Minister  von  Altenstein  be  re- 
quired to  be  procured,  and  that  the  sworn  statements  of 
Frau  von  Bardeleben,  a  witness  for  the  defence,  be  re- 
ceived in  evidence. 

But  as  both  that  correspondence  and  the  depositions 
of  said  witness  would  have  unravelled  the  machinations 
of  the  promoters  of  the  persecution,  the  motion  impli- 
cating Schon  and  other  high  officials  was  w^antonly  disre- 
garded, and  after  the  further  lapse  of  eighteen  months 
the  court  drafted,  on  December  4,  1841,  and  caused  to 
be  published  at  Konigsberg  on  February  2,  1842,  the  fol- 
lowing judgment  : 

«'  That  the  finding  of  the  Criminal  Senate  of  March  28,  1 839, 
published  August  30,  1839,  t>e  so  far  modified  that  the  ac- 
cused be  deprived  of  their  office  and  be  declared  unfit  for  any 
public  office,  not  for  intentional  violation  of  their  duty,,  but 
for  violation  of  their  duty  from  gross  negligence,  to  wit:  that 
the  accused,  Dr.  Johann  Wilhelm  Ebel,  be  dismissed  from 
his  office  of  archdeacon  and  preacher  of  the  Old-Town 
Church  at  Konigsberg,  and  that  the  accused  Georg  Heinrich 
Diestel  be  dismissed  from  his  office  of  preacher  of  the  Haber- 
berg  Church  at  Konigsberg;  and  further,  that  Dr.  Ebel  be 
acquitted  from  the  charge  of  having  founded  a  sect,  and  that 
the  finding  of  his  detention  in  a  public  institution  be  can- 
celled." 

It  will  be  observed  that  this  judgment  cancelled  in- 
deed the  most  crying  blunder  of  the  lower  court,  viz. : 
the  condemnation  on  the  ground  of  having  founded  a 
sect,  but  upheld,  nevertheless,  the  chief  wrong  in  prin- 
dpio,  namely,  that  free  inquiry  and  the  effort  of  urging 


1/6  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

the  application  of  biblical  principles  to  the  thought  and 
life  of  men  were  condemned  as  criminal  and  visited  with 
criminal  punishment. 

The  antagonism  running  through  the  second  sentence 
both  in  its  acquitting  and  condemnatoiy  portions  is 
very  pronounced.  Forced  to  reject  the  charge  of  sec- 
tarianism, and  not  daring  to  uphold  the  support  of  the 
Religious  Edict  as  a  monstrosity  abhorrent  to  the  spirit 
of  the  age,  it  nevertheless  inflicted  a  punishment  without 
an  offence  to  be  punished,  and  thus  involuntarily  con- 
demned the  whole  suit,  by  showing  that  the  criminal 
procedure  was  utterly  unfounded  and  unjustifiable. 

The  reader  may  desire  to  know  how  the  court  could 
thus  stultify  itself  and  perpetrate  so  outrageous  a  piece 
of  injustice  as  that  of  punishing  men  for  something 
which  they  had  not  only  not  committed,  but  of  which 
they  were  acquitted.  This  explanation  will  now  be 
given  in  brief. 

It  is  comprehended  in  the  single  proposition  that  the 
second  sentence,  like  the  first,  both  in  its  acquitting 
and  condemnatory  portions,  went  in  direct  opposition  to 
the  evidence,  to  the  laws  of  the  land,  and  to  the  dictates 
of  logic.  The  acquittal  from  the  charge  of  sectarianism 
on  the  ground  that  the  founding  of  a  sect  necessitates 
separation  from  the  established  church,  and  that  in  the 
case  in  hand  no  such  separation  was  attempted,  designed 
or  effected,  is  judicially  conclusive  ;  and  there  the  mat- 
ter ought  to  have  ended.  But  the  author  of  the  sentence 
undertook  the  superfluous  reiteration  on  sixty  folio  pages 
of  all  the  defamatory  charges  of  the  accusers,  without  an 
equally  explicit  recital  of  their  rebuttal,  which  in  all  fair- 
ness he  was  bound  to  do.  He  introduced  the  evidence 
for  the  defence  only  to  set  it  aside,  and  distort  the  case. 


THE    RELIGIOUS   SUIT.  1 7/ 

The  condemnatory  part  of  the  sentence  deals  with  : 

1.  FamiUar  conversation  with  friends  on  metaphysical, 
philosophical  and  theological  questions. 

2.  Conversational  expressions  relating  to  the  sanctity 
of  the  marriage  relation,  and 

3.  Treats  these  conversations  as  violations  of  official 
duty,  and  on  that  account  inflicts  the  punishment  named 
in  the  judgment. 

Reference  to  Appendix  B,  where  the  topics  touched 
under  i  are  fully  illustrated  in  copious  extracts,  will 
suffice  to  show  the  absurdity  of  making  them  the  subject 
of  criminal  inquiry,  and  the  outrage  of  branding  their 
conversational  discussion  as  a  criminal  offence.  If  the 
official  record  were  not  there  to  prove  the  unheard-of 
injustice,  it  would  be  incredible.  Let  the  matter  be 
illustrated.  I  have  before  me  the  December  number  of 
the  Contejnpoj'aiy  Review  (1881)  which  contains  Profes- 
sor Calderwood's  article  on  Evolution.  Let  a  clergy- 
man, who  is  in  the  habit  of  discussing  intellectual  or 
speculative  topics  with  a  select  number  of  educated  mem- 
bers of  his  congregation,  make  evolution  the  theme  of 
inquiry,  and  avow  his  conviction  that  "  the  rational  is 
the  key  to  existence."  Some  one  charges  him  there- 
upon with  heresy  and  sectarism,  the  matter  is  made 
the  subject  of  criminal  investigation,  and  in  spite  of  his 
protestation  to  the  contrary,  of  his  having  never  taught 
anything  of  the  kind,  in  fact  of  his  having  never  taught 
anything  contrary  to  the  received  standards  of  his 
church,  but  simply  conversed  on  the  subject  of  evolution 
with  his  friends,  and  in  spite  of  incontrovertible  proof 
to  that  effect,  those  conversations  are  nevertheless  de- 
nounced as  criminal  violations  of  his  duty  as  a  clergy- 
man, and  he  is  on  that  account  illegally  punished  with 
8* 


178  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

deprivation.  That  is  the  case  of  Ebel  and  Diestel. 
That  aspect  of  the  case  need  not  detain  us. 

2.  Conversational  expressions  relating  to  the  sanctity 
of  the  marriage  relation. 

The  matter  referred  to  here  had  been  made  the  start- 
ing-point* of  all  the  infamous  slanders  circulated  in  the 
lithographed  letter,  in  the  press,  and  otherwise  against 
Ebel  and  his  sect,  especially  by  Schon,  Fink  and  id  oiime 
genus.  It  has  likewise  been  unearthed,  in  the  most  un- 
warrantable manner  by  William  Hepworth  Dixon  in  his 
sensational  book  called  "  Spiritual  Wives."  The  present 
writer,  very  soon  after  the  appearance  of  that  bad  book, 
took  occasion  publicly  to  denounce  its  true  character  in 
an  article  on  the  Konigsberg  Religious  Suit,  printed  in 
the  Bibliotheca  Sacra,  October,  1869.  It  is  referred  to 
here  merely  as  a  matter  of  history,  for  the  book  itself 
has  been  buried  in  well-merited  oblivion  a  considerable 
number  of  years,  and  Dixon,  who  likewise  died  years 
ago,  never  dared  to  answer  the  scathing  pamphlet  of  Dr. 
Wilhelm  Ebel,"^  in  which  he  is  openly  charged  with  and 
proved  to  be  guilty  of  malicious  and  deliberate  false- 
hood. Although  the  matter  might  be  passed  over  in 
general  terms,  it  seems  better  to  produce  from  the 
record  all  that  there  is  of  it,  in  order  that  it  be  perma- 
nently available  to  any  and  all  desirous  of  knowing  the 
truth,  and  how  easy  it  is,  by  persistent  and  lascivious 
calumny,  to  degrade  the  noblest  utterances  to  the  vilest 
and  most  ignominious  ribaldry.  I  do  not  propose  to 
stain  the  pages  of  this  book,  or  to  insult  the  memory 
of  the  sainted  dead  with  the  repetition  of  those  calum- 

^  Dixon's  und  Bunker's  Seelenbrdnte  silhouettirt,  von  Wilhelm 
Ebel,  Dr.  phil.  Basel  und  Ludwigsburg,  1869. 


THE   RELIGIOUS   SUIT.  1 79 

nies,  but    shall  confine    myself   to  the  evidence  in  this 
matter. 

The  whole  conversation,  conducted  in  the  presence  of 
witnesses,  and  sworn  to  by  one  of  the  chief  insiigatoj's  of 
the  suit  as  beifig  the  whole,  was,  in  the  words  of  Eduard  von 
Hahnenfeld,*  made  under  oath  and,  in  writing,  as  follows: 

"  I  remember  how  Ebel,  in  a  conversation  with  several 
gentlemen,  in  response  to  questions  submitted  to  him,  called 
attention  to  the  circumstance  that  man  created  in  the  image 
of  God  was  originally  so  constituted  that  his  body  and  soul, 
his  understanding  and  feelings,  were  harmoniously  adjusted, 
that  the  promptings  of  the  flesh  diet  not  disturb  him^  seeing 
that  his  intellectual  nature  dominated  over  the  physical,  and 
that  then,  in  the  enjoyment  of  peace  and  a  good  conscience, 
there  was  nothing  to  interfere  with  his  upward  look  to  God. 
But  that  peace  and  that  calm  upward  look  to  God  vanished 
when  he  fell  into  sin,  in  consequence  whereof  the  equilibrium 
of  his  powers  became  disturbed,  sense  began  to  predominate 
and  animal  promptings  to  agitate  him.  From  that  time  for- 
ward he  stood  in  need  of  garments,  for  sin  having  also  dis- 
turbed the  sexual  relations,  mankind  ever  since  became  so 
sadly  degraded  that  the  majority  of  the  race  yielded  to  animal 
promptings  and  to  carnal  appetites  that  war  against  the  soul, 
on  which  account  the  holy  Scriptures  warn  us  to  abstain 
from  fornication  and  enjoin  the  duty  of  chastity.  Holy  Scrip- 
ture, moreover,  recommends  and  exhorts  us  to  the  recovery 
of  chastity,  and  to  yield  ourselves  to  the  influence  of  the 
Spirit  in  order  that,  according  to  our  original  destiny,  reason, 
and  not  the  animal  part  of  our  nature,  should  dominate. 
The  noble-minded  accordingly  consider  it  their  duty  to  main- 
tain purity  in  love.  It  is  true  that  in  this  their  aim  good  and 
spiritually-minded  men  have  erred  and  failed  ;  some,  deeming 
purity  in  love  an  utter  impossibility,  insisting  upon  the  prac- 
tice of  celibacy  as  conformable  to  the  will  of  God  ;  but  this  is 

*  Religiose  Bewegtmg^  pp.  73-75. 


l80  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

contradicted  by  the  tenor  of  the  whole  sacred  volume,  which 
recommends  the  purification  and  exaltation,  not  the  exter- 
mination, of  the  divinely-implanted  promptings  of  our  nature. 
Others,  indeed,  believing  in  and  striving  after  the  possibility 
of  restoring  sexual  purity  by  the  perilous  delusion  of  over- 
coming temptation  through  familiarity,  w^ander  likewise  from 
the  teachings  of  Holy  Scripture,  which  contains  not  the  faint- 
est trace  of  recommending  the  mortifying  of  the  flesh  by  such 
arbitrary  means ;  we  should  not  seek  without  for  that  which 
must  be  born  within  us. 

"  The  sense  of  shame  must  not  be  suppressed,  for  though 
it  entered  our  nature  with  the  fall,  it  is  a  precious  thing  to  be 
well  guarded,  and  as  a*  witness  of  the  Holy  Spirit  within 
us  that  we  are  sinful  and  have  fallen  from  original  inno- 
cence ;  the  sense  of  shame  should  correct  us,  and  we  ought 
to  be  very  careful  not  to  destroy  it.  It  is  only  by  living  in 
the  Spirit  that  we  can  establish  the  supremacy  of  mind  over 
sense,  and  not  fulfil  the  lusts  of  the  flesh. 

"  Liberties  with  members  of  the  other  sex  are  reprehensible 
under  all  circumstances,  incompatible  with  proper  decorum, 
and  perilous  to  pure  morals,  on  which  account  the  commerce 
of  the  sexes  requires  to  be  hedged  in  by  the  utmost  precau- 
tions. 

"  In  the  conjugal  relation,  likewise,  purity  ought  to  prevail, 
and  sense  ever  be  subordinate  to  mind.  Marriage,  to  those 
who  are  born  of  God,  is  the  beginning  of  the  restoration  of 
our  original  purity  ;  those  united  together  in  holy  wedlock 
love  each  other  consciously  under  the  sacred  promptings  of 
the  Spirit,  each  regarding  the  other  as  the  child  of  the  Father 
in  Heaven,  who  gave  each  to  the  other  for  their  mutual 
happiness,  and  their  union  is  not  like  that  of  brutes  and  brut- 
ish men,  the  promptings  of  low  instincts,  but  impelled  by  the 
promptings  of  love,  whose  seat  is  the  heart,  and  whose  Lord 
is  the  Spirit." 

Now  these  were  the  sentiments  of  Ebel,  and  who  can 
deny  that  they  are  lofty,  true,  and  ennobling  ?     All  else 


THE   RELIGIOUS   SUIT.  l8l 

was  calumny.  And  such  advice,  kindly  and  lovingly 
tendered  to  those  who,  in  the  course  of  a  long  ministry, 
came  to  seek  it  at  his  hands  ;  advice  tending  to  purify, 
elevate,  and  ennoble  the  lower  instincts  of  our  nature 
into  divinely  implanted  promptings  designed  to  make 
and  keep  us  pure  and  good,  was  condemned  as  criminal 
by  an  insensate  judge  on  the  testimony  of  avowed  and 
convicted  sensualists,  imbruted  in  carnality  of  the  lowest 
and  most  abandoned  order.* 

But  the  crowning  piece  of  this  arbitrary  sentence,  in 
open  conflict  with  the  evidence,  the  laws  of  the  land,  and 
with  reason,  is  the  absurdity  of  calling  these  imaginary 
offences  instances  of  violated  official  duty,  for  it  is  im- 
possible to  conceive  by  what  process  of  reason,  logic,  or 
justice  a  clergyman  may  be  deprived  of  the  privilege  of 
private  conversation,  which  is  accorded  to  every  other 
human  being  not  a  clergyman,  and  especially  guaranteed 
by  law  to  every  Prussian  subject,  who  enjoys  the  inalien- 
able rights  of  liberty  of  thought,  liberty  of  conscience, 
and  liberty  of  speech.  According  to  this  wonderful 
sentence  a  clergyman,  because  he  is  a  clergyman,  ceases 
to  have  a  private  life,  to  forfeit  the  privilege  of  private 
thought  and  its  expression  to  his  friends  in  private  conver- 
sation. 

From  this  second  and  final  sentence  there  was  no 
further  appeal  to  any  other  earthly  tribunal  in  Prussia, 
but  there  was  an  appeal  to  the  Highest  Tribunal,  superior 
to  earthly  courts  of  justice,  to  the  Tribunal  of  eternal  truth 
and  right  in  the  courts  above,  and  that  appeal,  made  in 
humble,  earnest  prayer,  in  meek  resignation,  and  trium.- 
phant   faith  has  not   been  made  in  vain,  for   He   that 

*  See  what  is  said  of  Sachs,  Hake,  and  others,  pp.  i2i  sq. ;  157. 


1 82  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

judgeth  righteous  judgment  has  long  since  established 
the  innocence  of  Ebel  and  Diestel,  and  so  overruled  the 
injustice  meted  out  to  them  that  the  very  wrath  of  man 
has  been  made  to  praise  Him,  and  the  righteousness  of 
His  persecuted  servants  has  been  brought  forth  as  the 
light  and  their  judgment  as  the  noonday. 

There  are  still  several  particulars  connected  with  the 
period  of  the  suit  which  remain  to  be  chronicled.  After 
the  suspension  of  Ebel,  there  was  one  day  found  in  a 
street  of  Konigsberg  the  copy  of  a  petition,  sent  by  the 
catechumens  of  Ebel  to  His  Majesty  the  King  of  Prussia, 
which,  on  account  of  the  beautiful  and  touching  tribute 
it  pays  to  him,  and  because  of  the  tender  sympathy  in 
which  it  originated,  deserves  to  be  put  on  permanent 
record.    It  runs  thus  : 

"  High  and  most  potent  king  !  Most  gracious,  and  dearly 
beloved  king  and  lord  !  Respectfully  and  full  of  confidence 
we  venture  to  approach  the  throne  of  our  prince,  and  urge 
upon  the  paternal  heart  of  our  dear  king  the  earnest  suppli- 
cation :   '  Give  us  back  our  beloved  teacher  ! ' 

"We,  the  catechumens  of  Dr.  Ebel,  archdeacon  and 
preacher  of  the  Old-Town  Church  of  the  city,  some  of  us 
having  been  confirmed  by  him  within  the  last  few  years,  and 
others  accepted  of  him  for  instrucdon  several  months  ago, 
feel  most  deeply  pained,  because  malice  has  succeeded  by 
invented  falsehoods  and  calumnies  to  bring  about  the  suspen- 
sion from  office  of  this  our  venerable  religious  instructor. 
Although  himself  far  above  such  base  accusations  which  are 
unable  to  cast  him  down,  but  fill  us  with  profound  abhorrence 
and  painful  sorrow,  and  constrain  us  to  forward  these  words 
of  childlike  suppHcation  to  the  dear  father  of  our  country  to- 
wards whom  the  hearts  of  all  of  us  go  out  in  hopeful  expect- 
ation. We  feel  ourselves  deserted,  bereft  as  we  are  of  our 
fatherly  friend  and  teacher,  and  many  a  one  among  us  ex- 


THE   RELIGIOUS   SUIT.  1 83 

claimed  :  '  I  shall  write  to  our  king  ! '  this  could  not  remain 
an  empty  speech,  and  we  resolved  to  pour  out  the  earnest 
desire  and  most  cherished  longing  of  our  heart  before  our 
dear  prince ;  oh,  that  we  were  able  to  describe  in  lively  colors 
the  piety  and  love  of  Dr.  Ebel,  rendering  happy  all  that  sur- 
round him,  and  prompting  the  hearts  of  all  men  to  whatever 
is  good,  and  to  present  to  your  Majesty  a  portraiture  of  his 
life  consecrated  to  God.  Words  cannot  express  it — we  have 
experienced  in  our  hearts  the  shining  influence  of  our  godly 
teacher,  the  vital  power  of  divine  love  streaming  forth  from 
his  every  word,  mightily  quickening  from  death  unto  life,  and 
love,  and  obedience  to  God  and  man,  and  causing  us  to  de- 
light in  the  practice  of  virtue  and  the  discharge  of  our  duty. 
If  we  were  able  in  our  feeble  words  to  delineate  the  picture 
of  this  man  who  has  only  God  before  his  eyes  and  in  his  heart, 
and  has  likewise  understood  to  fill  our  hearts  with  the  desire 
to  love  God  and  walk  in  His  wa3^s — our  dear  king,  who  loves 
godliness  and  piety,  and  in  whom  next  to  God  we  place  our 
entire  hope,  we  are  convinced  would  perceive  that  he  is  in- 
nocent. The  hours  in  which  our  dear  teacher  has  made  us 
acquainted  with  the  will  of  God  were  until  now  the  most 
beautiful  of  our  life,  henceforth  it  will  be  that  hour  in  which 
the  grace  and  justice  of  your  Majesty  shall  restore  him  to  us. 
May  we  not  have  to  wait  long  in  vain,  and  may  our  united 
supplication  reach  the  heart  of  our  dear  and  venerated  king  ! 
Yes,  it  will  be  done,  we  shall  not  have  asked  in  vain  for 
justice. 

"When  Dr.  Ebel  announced  to  the  congregation  your 
Majesty's  order  for  the  rebuilding  of  the  Old-Town  Church, 
he  gratefully  exclaimed  :  '  Yea,  thy  king  hath  comforted  thee 
and  turned  thy  sorrow  into  joy.  Give  ear,  now,  every  mem- 
ber of  this  congregation,  give  ear  thou  royal  city,  give  ear  O 
fatherland  throughout  thy  borders,  the  heart  of  our  king  hath 
comforted  us  ! '    Will  he  not  also  comfort  us  now  ? 

"Confidingly  looking  up  to  the  throne  of  our  dear  king, 
whom  our  dear  teacher  has  taught  us  to  honor,  love  and  re- 
member in  our  prayers,  we   remain  in  profound  obedience 


1 84  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

and  with  respectful   affection  your  Majesty's    most    faithful 
children." 

The  event  referred  to  at  the  close  of  the  foregoing 
petition  belongs  to  the  year  1835,  and  was  the  result  of 
Ebel's  indefatigable  energy  ;  the  king  had  subscribed  a 
handsome  sum  and  augmented  it  by  a  new  one  along 
with  the  cabinet  order  drawn  up  on  the  evening  before 
his  birthday  (Aug.  3,  1835)  ;  he  also  approved  the  plan  of 
enclosing  the  site  of  the  Old-Town  Church  (which  Schon 
wanted  to  convert  into  a  cabbage  market),  and  of  plant- 
ing it  with  trees,  as  a  standing  memorial  of  the  planting 
of  God  which  for  centuries  had  been  so  tenderly  nursed 
on  that  sacred  spot.*  Ebel  at  the  time  made  this  modest 
entry  among  his  memoranda  :  *'  O  gracious  God,  thou 
hast  crowned  our  effort  with  success  in  enabling  us  to 
provide  a  new  church  for  the  Old-Town  congregation. 
But  a  preacher  after  thine  own  heart  I  have  been  unable 
(as  presiding  officer  of  the  church  collegium)  to  secure. " 

It  is  gratifying  to  record  that  the  last  prayer  also  has 
been  mercifully  heard  and  answered,  and  the  Reverend 
Mr.  Lackner,  the  present  incumbent  of  the  church,  is 
such  a  man,  and  delights  to  trace  and  recognize  the 
blessed  fruits  of  Ebel's  ministry.     Not  long  ago  he  is  re- 

*  It  was  Count  Kanitz,  who,  in  order  to  prevent  the  desecration 
of  that  hallowed  spot,  rented  it  for  an  indefinite  number  of  years, 
bore  the  expense  of  enclosing  it  with  an  iron  fence  and  transforming 
it  into  a  beautiful  park,  an  ornament  of  the  city.  The  place  belongs 
now  either  to  the  municipality  or  to  the  congregation  ;  it  is  in  a 
state  of  excellent  preservation,  and  displays  in  the  midst  of  shrub- 
bery and  flowers  a  handsome  fountain.  As  the  trees  and  plants 
were  deemed  a  fitting  symbol  of  the  planting  of  God,  so  the  foun- 
tain is  an  equally  appropriate  emblem  of  the  fountain  of  living 
waters  for  the  healing  of  the  people. 


THE   RELIGIOUS   SUIT.  185 

ported  to  have  stated  to  a  lady  at  Konigsberg  :  "  How 
could  the  effects  of  Dr.  Ebel's  ministry  have  continued 
so  long,  if  a  single  iota  of  all  the  calumnies  about  him 
had  been  founded  in  truth  ?  .  .  .  .  When  I  meet 
those  who  Avould  maintain  the  contrary,  I  make  ^ery 
opposition,  for  I  know  better  than  any  one  what  kind  of 
seed  he  sowed." 

Another  pleasing  and  interesting  event  belonging  to 
the  trying  period  of  the  suit,  when  the  storm  of  persecu- 
tion was  fiercest,  is  the  following.  The  people  at  Konigs- 
berg, I  mean  the  great  mass  of  the  people,  were  utterly 
incredulous  as  to  the  slanders  so  sedulously  and  persist- 
ently propagated,  and  their  faith  in  Ebel  was  as  unshaken 
as  their  affection  for  him  was  deep-seated  ;  they  knew 
that  he  was  a  persecuted  man,  and  they  sought  occasion 
for  the  public  expression  of  their  opinion.  It  is  cus- 
tomary at  Konigsberg  that  on  Christmas  Eve  bands  of 
musicians  pass  through  the  streets  playing  solemn  Christ- 
mas chorals.  Such  a  chorus  of  trombones  was  approach- 
ing the  street  in  which  Ebel  lived.  The  family  was  as- 
sembled in  the  Doctor's  room  for  the  purpose  of  celebrat- 
ing in  the  true  German  fashion  the  time-honored  IVei'/i- 
nachtsbescheerimg,  and  heard  the  solemnly  joyous  strains 
of  the  majestic  trombones  ;  the  windows  were  opened 
that  all  might  hear  the  beautiful  music  as  it  went  past ; 
the  chorus  did  not  go  past,  but  took  up  its  stand  before 
the  house,  and  in  the  hearing  of  the  whole  church-square, 
right  under  Ebel's  windows,  played  an  entire  stanza  of 
the  ancient  hymn  : 

"  Gelobet  seist  du  Jesus  Christ, 
Dass  du  Mensch  geboren  hist,''  etc. 

The  good  doctor  wept  tears  of  joy  over  this  beautiful 


1 86  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

celebration  of  the  "  birthday  of  the  Lord  Jesus,"  and  this 
public  and  touching  recognition  of  his  worth. 

The  judgment  of  the  final  sentence  of  course  imposed 
the  necessity  of  an  enforced  outward  and  official  dissolu- 
tion of  his  connection  with  the  Old-Town  Church  ;  the 
far  stronger  inward  connection  with  every  member  of  his 
flock,  which  lived  in  their  hearts  and  souls,  could  not  be 
broken  by  that  unjust  decree  ;  those  ties  were  in- 
dissoluble, and  were  understood  to  be  so  both  by  him- 
self and  the  people. 

In  his  farewell  addressed  to  the  officers  of  the  con- 
gregation he  wTote  : 

"  The  judgment  of  the  Supreme  Senate  of  Appeals  of  the 
Royal  Kammergericht  deprives  me  of  my  office  of  archdeacon 
of  the  Old-Town  Church.  God  has  vouchsafed  to  honor  His 
servant  by  deigning  to  set  upon  him  and  upon  his  nearly 
thirty  years'  service  in  the  Christian  ministry  the  seal  of  legit- 
imation, and  to  utter  thereby  a  word  of  profound  significance 
to  all  familiar  with  his  ministry  of  the  Word." 

A  letter  written  by  him  about  this  time  affords  further 
insight  of  his  feelings  : 

"  Time  in  its  development  hastens  onward  to  maturity, 
and  God,  who  willeth  that  all  men  should  be  saved,  also 
willeth  that  by  free  choice  laying  hold  of  salvation  they  should 
come  to  a  knowledge  of  the  truth.  This  knowledge,  however, 
can  only  be  found  through  faith  in  the  declarations  of  the 
Bible.  Our  age  needs  a  philosophy,  and  seeks  one  ;  but  it 
will  continue  in  perplexity  unnl  it  learns  to  subordinate  rea- 
son to  the  divine  Word.  Such  is  the  drift  and  spirit  of  the 
philosophy  which  ranging  itself  below  the  Bible,  advances  no 
other  claim  than  that  of  supplying  the  thinking  mind  with 
a  key  to  open  the  Bible,  and  repudiate  the  views  and  conse- 
quences which  others  have  imputed  to  it.  This  philosophy, 
instead  of  oppugning  the  fundamental  truths  of  the  evangeli- 


THE   RELIGIOUS   SUIT.  1 87 

cal  church,  confirms  them,  and  is  a  trusty  weapon  directed 
at  once  against  the  unbeHef  and  the  show  rehgion  of  the 
age. 

"  With  profound  gratitude  to  God  I  now  confess,  that  while 
other  philosophies  have  carried  away  from  the  Bible  hun- 
dreds of  my  brethren  in  the  ministry,  this  philosophy  has  pre- 
served me  from  the  loose  seductions  of  a  turbulent  age,  and 
given  me  in  the  evangelical  confession  of  faith  a  strength  of 
conviction  which,  in  spite  of  incessant  hostility,  has  remained 
unshaken  in  strictly  biblical  preaching. 

"  Committing  therefore  all  things  to  Him,  who  gave  to  man 
the  word  of  the  Bible,  which,  as  to  the  whole  of  the  contents 
I  hold  to  be  divine  truth,  and  trusting  in  Him  who  has  thus 
far  so  wonderfully  led  me,  I  retire  from  office  with  a  quiet 
mind." 

From  still  another  letter,  less  formal,  written  to  Pastor 
Gasbeck  in  Preuss-Eylau,  his  brother-in-law,  and  bear- 
ing date  March  14,  1842,  are  drawn  these  passages  : 

"  Never  shall  I  forget  the  love  and  sympathy  with  which  in 
the  spring-time  of  our  friendship  you  rejoiced  with  me  over 
the  victory  of  God  over  the  adversaries  of  His  truth,  which 
you  even  then  (in  18 14)  did  know.  The  authorities  have  in 
the  year  1841  become  guilty  of  what  the  Ministerium  for  Eccle- 
siastical Affairs  then  described  as  inconsistency  and  an  act  of 
violence  bearing  the  appearance  of  persecution.  Still  we  have 
His  blessed  word  that  'the  gates  of  hell  shall  not  prevail 
against  His  church  ; '  and  in  the  measure  as  I  feel  conscious 
(what  my  adversaries  were  constrained  to  admit)  that  all  my 
work  originated  in  sincere  faith  in  Him,  and  in  the  desire  to 
reconcile  this  my  sacred  faith  with  reason,  I  am  cheerful  and 
composed.  These  words,  used  by  Consistorial  Rath  Kahler 
in  his  lampoon  (in  condemnation  of  his  own  conduct)  as  de- 
scriptive of  the  frame  of  mind  in  which  I  received  the  sus- 
pension, thank  God,  continue  to  express  my  feelings,  for  I 
know  that  my  life  has  always  been  consecrated  to  God  and  to 


1 88  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

the  service  of  my  fellow-men  in  love.  .  .  .  There  are 
moments  in  life  when  language  fails  us,  when  it  behooves  us 
to  be  still,  and  without  advancing  any  claims,  to  depend  on 
the  love  of  our  friends.  .  .  .  And  now,  my  dear  ones, 
we  unite  in  love  to  you  and  your  children  with  our  best 
wishes,  in  remembrance  of  the  years  when  you,  along  with 
others,  heard  from  my  mouth,  and  I  may  add  from  my  inmost 
heart,  the  message  of  God  ;  thanks,  my  warmest  thanks,  for 
every  proof  of  your  love,  which  has  often,  very  often  done  me 
good,  and  while  I  write  this,  moved  to  tears,  I  beg  that  your 
prayers  and  remembrance  may  accompany  us  to  our  retire- 
ment." 


It  will  be  remembered  that  Mrs.  Ebel  was  the  eldest 
daughter  of  the  burgess  of  Quittainen.  The  good  bur- 
gess had  gone  home  at  the  time  of  the  suit,  but  his  widow 
was  still  on  earth.  One  of  her  sons,  Bernhardt  Lein- 
weber,  had  been  very  successful  as  a  farmer,  and  was 
devotedly  attached  to  Ebel,  through  whose  instrumen- 
tality and  that  of  Kanitz  he  had  made  his  way  in  the 
world.  When  he  heard  that  the  Ebels  were  about  to 
leave  Konigsberg,  he  felt  that  he  ought  to  do  something 
to  lighten  their  burden,  and  a  few  days  before  they  bade 
adieu  to  the  beloved  city,  he  came  with  a  ponderous 
train  laden  with  solid  products  of  his  farm,  in  the  shape 
of  potatoes,  flour,  dried  fruit  and  the  like,  begging  them 
kindly  to  accept  his  free-will  offering  as  a  loving  con- 
tribution to  their  new  establishment. 

About  five  weeks  after  the  foregoing  letter  was  written. 


THE   RELIGIOUS   SUIT.  189 

and  after  all  the  arrangements  for  leaving  the  parson- 
age had  been  completed,  after  the  sad  and  last  words 
of  farewell  had  been  spoken,  there  came  early  in  the 
morning  of  April  26,  1842,  Baron  Ernst  von  Heyking 
(the  same  from  whose  beautiful  manuscript  so  many  in- 
teresting details  have  been  taken)  to  be  with  the  family 
to  the  last.  He  had  really  come  to  comfort  and  cheer 
by  his  presence  Ebel  and  his  family,  but  the  tender,  gen- 
tle, kindly  man  felt  so  sad  at  heart  that  instead  of  com- 
forting them,  Ebel  had  to  comfort  him  ;  tears  glistened 
in  his  eyes  and  in  his  grief  language  died  on  his  lips. 
But  he  was  there  in  love,  and  it  was  he  who  helped  them 
into  the  coach,  and  when  his  straining  eyes  could  no 
longer  see  the  coach  which  carried  away  his  dear  friends, 
and  the  sound  of  the  wheels  grew  fainter  on  the  pave- 
ment, he  returned  to  lock  the  doors,  and  took  the  keys 
to  the  parish-clerk. 

And  so  Ebel  was  gone  from  his  dear  Old-Town  Church, 
gone  from  Konigsberg,  and  the  enemies  of  that  godly 
man,  and  the  enemies  of  the  truth  which  he  so  manfully 
and  nobly  advocated  seemed  to  triumph.  It  was  a  poor 
triumph  :  v/hat  became  of  them  individually  I  cannot 
tell ;  I  only  know  that  Ebel  forgave  them  truly  and  sin- 
cerely the  wrong  they  had  done  him,  and  that  the  Prime 
Minister  of  Prussia,  the  late  Rudolph  von  Auerswald,  the 
personal  friend  of  the  reigning  emperor  of  Germany,  told 
his  sister,  the  sainted  Countess  Ida  von  der  Groben,  in  a 
conversation  held  at  Hoheneck,  a  number  of  years  later 
in  reference  to  them  that  "  they  had  all  come  to  grief.' 
They  have  long  since  gone  to  their  account,  and  it  is  not 
necessary  to  name  them  again.  On  the  suit  itself  the 
words  of  Lactantius  {Insfitiit.  v.)  seem  to  furnish  an  ap- 
propriate commentary  : 


1 90  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

"  What  maybe  the  chief  element  of  this  strong,  determined 
hatred  ?  Does  truth  bring  forth  hatred  ?  Or  are  they  ashamed 
of  their  wickedness  in  presence  of  the  righteous  and  the  good  ? 
Or  is  it  both  ?  For  truth  is  hated  for  no  other  reason  than 
that  the'sinner  desires  full  scope  for  his  sins,  and  thinks  that 
his  wickedness  can  only  then  be  fully  gratified  when  there  is 
none  left  to  rebuke  it.  On  this  account  the  pagans  want  to 
exterminate  the  Christians  as  the  witnesses  of  their  malice 
and  wickedness,  for  they  loathe  them  as  those  who  rebuke 
their  lives.  For  why  should  a  few  be  good  at  so  inconve- 
nient a  season,  and  by  their  good  conversation  reproach  the 
general  immorality  ?  Why  should  not  all  be  equally  bad, 
thievish,  unchaste,  adulterous,  perjured,  lustful  and  cunning  ? 
Such  being  the  case,  it  did  not  suffice  to  oppress  the  Chris- 
tians by  outward  acts  of  violence ;  they  had,  if  possible,  to  be 
morally  annihilated.  And  how  could  that  be  done  more 
effectually  than  by  distorting  their  doctrine  "  (branding  it  as 
infamous)  "  and  by  slandering  their  conversation  ?  "  * 

*  It  is  remarkable,  instructive,  and  most  consoling  to  the  be- 
liever in  the  Bible  as  the  Word  of  God,  that  no  power  of  human  or 
earthly  origin  can  prevail  against  it.  The  rationalists  and  Eras- 
tians  of  Konigsberg  thought  they  had  killed  the  Bible  when  they 
cried  down  Schonherr,  and  strove  by  calumny  to  kill  Ebel.  Their 
very  opposition  made  the  cause  more  prominent,  and  their  calum- 
nies brought  out  the  truth.  The  pure  evangelical  and  biblical 
teaching  of  Ebel  has  raised  him  to  a  pedestal  of  glory,  and  his  name 
will  be  delivered  to  posterity  as  that  of  saint  and  martyr,  who  in  the 
nineteenth  century  proclaimed,  and  was  persecuted  because  he  pro- 
claimed, personal  holiness  as  the  indispensable  concomitant  and 
exponent  of  the  Christian  life.  The  names  and  the  memory  of  his 
persecutors  are  buried  in  oblivion,  but  the  name  of  Ebel,  the  wit- 
ness and  lover  of  Jesus,  is  better  known  than  ever,  and  the  truth  of 
his  beautiful  life  will  be  read  wherever  English  and  German  speech 
are  known.    . 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


RE  ST. 


It  has  been  stated  that  the  great  mass  of  the  people 
at  Konigsberg  never  beHeved  the  charges  that  had 
been  brought  against  Ebel,  while  the  suit  was  pending, 
and  when  it  became  known  that  he  was  acquitted  of  any 
and  everything  that  malice  had  been  able  to  invent,  that 
he  was  likewise  acquitted  of  the  mysterious  crime  of 
having  founded  a  sect,  of  whose  very  existence  nobody 
at  Konigsberg  had  the  remotest  idea,  and  concerning 
which  it  moreover  transpired  that  it  never  had  any  ex- 
istence except  in  the  heated  and  inventive  brains  of  the 
promoters  of  the  suit,  the  people,  of  course,  who  knew 
and  loved  Ebel,  and  knew  far  better  than  any  one  else  the 
character  and  aims  of  his  opponents,  were  more  devoted 
to  him  than  ever  before,  when  in  spite  of  that  knowledge, 
in  spite  of  his  innocence,  he  was  unjustly  deprived  of  his 
office.  He  was  in  their  eyes  a  martyr  to  official  incompe- 
tence and  theological  hatred  ;  and  they  would  have  loved 
him  just  as  much  as  they  did,  if  the  stupid  sect-business 
had  been  true  ;  they  knew  that  Ebel  was  their  friend,  that 
he  preached  the  truth,  that  he  was  a  good  man  and  a  true, 
and  the  dogma,  or  rather  the  speciilative  concept  of  the 
dualistic  principle  lay  in  a  region  they  could  not  and  did 
not  care  to  explore ;  and  as  that  dogma  or  principle  had 

191 


192  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

no  more  connection  with  sectarianism  than  the  theory  of 
the  northwest  passage  or  the  primary  uses  and  designs  of 
the  pyramids,  they  left  the  matter  supremely  alone,  and 
only  grieved,  and  in  the  bitterness  of  sorrow,  as  a  law- 
abiding  people,  submitted  to  the  inevitable  separation 
from  him  ;  but  they  never  ceased  to  love  him  and,  as 
will  be  seen  by-and-by,  looked  upon  him  as  their  God- 
sent  minister  until  he  fell  asleep.  As  for  the  noble  band 
of  his  personal  friends,  they  were  true  to  him  to  a  man 
they  loved  him  and  esteemed  him,  and  all  that  were 
near  to  him — if  it  were  possible  better  than  ever  before — 
and  the  only  question  among  them  was  as  to  who  should 
enjoy  the  privilege  of  doing  most  for  him. 

Where  was  he  to  live  ?  What  was  he  to  do  ?  Let 
the  matter  be  realized.  He  had  just  completed  the 
fifty-eighth  year  of  his  life  ;  by  his  side  stood  his  help- 
mate, the  brave  and  gentle  Augusta,  and  four  children, 
three  sons  and  a  daughter.  Lebrecht,  the  oldest,  held 
a  tutorship  ;  *  Wilhelm  was  just  beginning  to  make  his 
way,  and  Theodor  was  still  pursuing  his  studies  ;  and 
there  was  Adalberta,  the  only  surviving  daughter  (an- 
other daughter,  Justine,  had  died  in  childhood).  She 
was  a  merry  child  of  eleven  summers,  whom  the  good 
Ebel  used  to  call  his  "jubilee-gift,"  because  she,  the 
long  wished-for  daughter,  had  come  just  two  days  before 
the  twenty-fifth  anniversary  of  his  ordination  ;  her 
bright  ways  and  constant  mirthfulness  were  like  sunshine 
to  him  in  the  gloom  of  the  dismal  suit.     This  charming 


*  The  Rev.  Lebrecht  Ebel  settled  in  Pomerania,  where  he  found 
a  fast  and  true  friend  in  Count  von  Munchovv,  see  pp.  141,  203. 
He  died  at  Berlin,  and  was  buried  at  Sallentin  in  1872,  and  his  two 
surviving  sons  hold  positions  in  the  postal  service  of  Ge/inany. 


REST.  193 

Christian  household,  united  in  love,  had  to  be  scattered, 
for  though  Adelberta  would  go  with  her  parents,  the  sons 
had  to  be  left  behind,  and  that  was  a  great  and  sore  trial 
to  Ebel  and  his  wife,  especially  to  her  ;  for  though  one 
and  all  were  good,  dear  children,  brought  up  in  the  fear 
of  God,  and  devotedly  attached  to  their  parents,  and 
though  provision  had  been  made  for  their  comfort,  yet 
the  old  home  would  be  broken,  the  tender  ministrations 
of  that  mother  and  the  wise  counsel  of  the  father  be 
withheld  from  them.  That  was  what  deprivation  meant 
in  the  family  which  affected  all  alike  in  the  sorrow  it 
occasioned.  Nevertheless  there  was  no  deeper  gloom, 
clouds  were  passing  over  them,  and  they  saw  and  felt 
their  shadow  for  a  moment,  but  presently  sunlight  burst 
in  upon  them.  There  came  a  letter  from  Pomerania, 
from  Ebel's  old  and  true  friend,  Count  Carl  von  Miin- 
chow,  a  gallant  soldier,  and  a  soldier  of  Christ,  inviting 
him  to  live  on  his  estate,  on  which  he  placed  a  house 
and  garden  at  his  disposal ;  and  Eduard  von  Hahnen- 
feld  sent  kindly  greetings,  begging  him  to  accept  on  his 
estate  a  new  house  and  a  garden  in  token,  of  his  love. 
It  was  difficult  at  first  to  reach  a  decision,  for  he  could 
not  accept  both  offers,  and  both  were  as  much  beloved 
by  Ebel  as  they  loved  him.  But  ultimately  it  was  de- 
cided to  accept  that  of  Hahnenfeld,  who  likewise  invited 
the  Countess  Ida  to  come  along,  and  so  the  family  went 
to  Grunenfeld  in  East  Prussia,  chiefly  because  it  was  so 
much  nearer  to  Konigsberg  than  the  delightful  Pome- 
ranian home  of  Miinchow.  Also  Baron  E.  von  Heyking 
and  his  wife  were  induced  to  come  to  Grunenfeld  ;  the 
baroness  lived  there  until  she  fell  asleep  in  1869. 

Six  happy  years  they  spent  in  the  rural  retirement  of 
Grunenfeld  ;  the  busy,  stirring  activity  of  the   Konigs- 


194  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

berg  charge  was  changed  for  literary  pursuits,  and  the 
intellectual  bias  of  all  that  were  there,  the  eminent  social 
virtues  and  graces  of  the  hospitable,  warm-hearted 
Hahnenfeld  and  his  amiable,  interesting  wife,  the  bright 
saUies  of  the  gifted  Countess  Ida,  made  the  little  colony 
a  haven  of  blissful  repose.  It  was  not  by  any  means 
lonely  there  ;  the  innocent  prattle  of  childhood  kept 
them  all  lively  enough  ;  the  present  owner  of  the  pater- 
nal estate,  Friedrich,  was  then  a  merry  little  boy  ;  during 
those  years  his  two  sisters  were  born,  and  that  meant 
not  only  joyous  baptismal  celebrations,  but  unbroken 
daily  animation  ;  visitors  would  come  and  go,  and  the 
summer  and  Christmas  vacations  reunited  for  the  time 
all  the  scattered  members  of  the  family.  Then  there 
were  the  diversified  pleasures  of  a  pure  country  life ; 
the  estate  was  quite  extensive  and  the  tenantry  and 
laborers  not  a  few  in  number.  And  Hahnenfeld  was  a 
very  kind  and  just  lord,  respected  and  beloved  for  his 
sympathy  and  thoughtfulness.  At  Christmas  the  village 
youth  gathered  round  stately  spruce  trees,  gaily  illumi- 
nated with  a  profusion  of  wax  lights  amid  golden  orna- 
ments symbolic  of  the  heavens  above  in  sun  and  moon 
and  stars,  and  angels,  and  of  the  earth  beneath  from 
every  kingdom  of  nature,  clusters  of  fruit  in  gorgeous 
hues  as  it  grew  in  sunny  climes,  or  more  wondrous 
still,  had  been  produced  by  the  art  of  the  glass-blower, 
the  tinsmith  or  the  confectioner  in  harmonious  juxta- 
position with  lambs  and  dogs,  and  perhaps  some  diminu- 
tive elephant,  horse  or  whale  of  marchpane  dangling,  oh, 
so  joyously  and  kindly  from  the  glossy  twigs  and 
branches  of  the  Christmas-tree,  at  the  base  of  which 
there  were  still  other  marvels  in  the  shape  of  sheep-folds, 
and  arks  of   Noah,  and   dolls  with  domestic   establish- 


REST.  195 

ments,  whips  and  knives,  fur  caps  and  skates  and  books, 
drums  and  harmonicas,  trumpets  with  green  tassels  and 
crimson  Hning,  and  sundry  more  which  Christkindchen  had 
got  from  all  manner  of  places,  for  all  manner  of  folk 
who  sang  Christmas  carols  and  celebrated  the  birth- 
day of  the  Lord  Jesus,  and  went  home  happy  and  de- 
lighted and  blessing  the  good  lord  of  the  manor  who  was 
such  a  favorite  with  Christkindchen  that  all  these  precious 
things  were  left  at  the  manor  for  the  special  happiness 
of  the  Grunenfeld  village  children, 

A  visit  to  Konigsberg  in  the  winter  of  1846-4^  by 
Ebel  and  his  family  was  marked  by  an  incident  quite 
touching  in  its  way.  He  sent  his  daughter  Adelberta  to 
Pastor  Schulz,  archdeacon  of  the  Lobnicht  Church,  to 
attend  his  lectures  for  confirmation.  It  is  customary  in 
the  Lutheran  Church  that  the  parents  of  the  catechumens 
offer  to  the  minister  on  that  occasion  a  honorarium. 
Ebel,  of  course,  observed  the  custom  in  the  case  of  his 
daughter,  but  Schulz  had  his  own  views  on  the  subject, 
and  wrote  the  following  very  commendable  letter  : 

''Most  Honored  Brother : — If  you  deem  me  worthy  to 
address  you  as  my  brother,  it  follows  that  betwixt  brothers 
in  the  ministry  the  question  of  remuneration  for  little  services 
is  entirely  out  of  order. 

"You  have  honored  and  greatly  rejoiced  me  in  committing 
the  instruction  of  your  loved  child  to  my  care,  and  making 
choice  of  me  to  undertake  for  her  your  own  sacred  work  ot 
confirming  her.  I  really  do  not  know  which  of  us  two  is  the 
other's  greater  debtor.  I,  for  my  part,  cannot  but  feel  that 
I  am  bound  to  be  grateful.  At  all  events  we  are  fully  even, 
and  any  external  expression  of  gratitude  tendered  to  me  is 
wholly  out  of  the  question.  You  will,  therefore,  kindly  par- 
don your  brother  his  return  of  the  enclosure. 

"  But  the  love  and  friendship  of  yourself  and  your  dear 


196  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

family  I  feel  rejoiced  and  proud  to  accept,  and  beg  that  you 
keep  in  your  heart  a  place  in  remembrance  of  me,  etc.,  etc. 

"  KONIGSBERG,  lyth  April,  1847." 

The  same  clergyman  had  previously  confirmed  Miss 
Salome  von  Saucken,  an"  early  friend  of  Miss  Ebel,  who 
has  lived  at  Hoheneck  since  1870.  She  is  the  grand- 
daughter of  Colonel  de  la  Chevallerie,  whose  work  on 
Schonherr  is  mentioned  in  the  literature  given  in  Ap- 
pendix C. 

The  annual  harvest-home  at  Grunenfeld  was  also  a  most 
delightful  affair.  It  took  place  at  the  end  of  the  ingather- 
ing of  the  fruits  of  the  field  ;  all  the  laborers,  the  reapers 
of  both  sexes,  in  picturesque  attire,  led  by  the  first  reaper, 
appeared  in  procession  before  the  manor-house,  the  latter 
carrying  a  wreath  of  ears  gaily  ornamented  with  flowers 
and  ribbons,  which  he  presented  to  Hahnenfeld  accord- 
ing to  ancient  usage,  repeating  the  customary  ditty,  con- 
cluding with  a  rousing  Lebe  hoch  (Long  and  happy  life 
to  the  lord  of  the  manor  and  his  family)  vigorously 
echoed  by  all  the  rest,  to  which  Hahnenfeld  responded, 
saying :  "  Prosperity  to  all  the  trusty  Grunenfelders," 
etc.  Then  followed  a  sumptuous  repast,  which  termi- 
nated in  a  general  dance,  to  the  more  especial  delight  of 
the  young  folk.  There  was  an  amusing  incident  in  the 
harvest-home  of  1843.  The  dance  was  cheerily  progress- 
ing on  a  meadow  by  a  lake  when  night  set  in  ;  the  genial 
Hahnenfeld  ordered  an  illumination  by  causing  several 
tar  barrels  to  be  set  on  fire  by  the  lake,  with  the  result 
that  the  bright  flames  shot  up  high  into  the  air,  and 
their  flickering  splendor  bathed  the  meadow  and  dancers 
in  a  picturesque  flood  of  light.  Not  long  after,  when  gay 
rejoicing  was  at  it  height,  a  thundering  noise  was  heard 


REST.  197 

approaching  over  the  village  street,  and  there  appeared  a 
fire  engine  with  a  full  complement  of  firemen  from  the 
neighboring  village  of  Vogelsang  ;  for  the  kindly  Vogel- 
sangers,  having  noticed  the  bright  reflection  of  the 
flames,  and  unable  to  account  for  it,  thought  that  Grunen- 
feld  was  on  fire,  and  came  in  hot  haste  to  aid  in  putting 
it  out.  They  were,  of  course,  delighted  to  find  that 
their  help  was  fortunately  not  required,  and  as  there  was 
no  need  of  their  services  in  that  respect  they  made 
themselves  useful  in  another,  to  the  intense  gratification 
of  the  village  maidens,  who  found  that  the  corps  of 
dancers  had  been  strongly  recruited  by  the  good  fire- 
men. 

In  addition  to  what  has  been  said  of  Hahnenfeld"^,  a 
few  words  relating  to  his  character,  life,  and  family  may 
not  be  deemed  superfluous.  He  was  a  most  excellent 
man,  very  benevolent,  highly  accomplished,  a  universal 
favorite  with  all  that  knew  him,  and  felt  the  happy  in- 
fluence of  his  simple,  earnest,  consistent  Christian  life. 
He  wrote  two  works  of  considerable  merit  bearing  on 
Ebel's  persecution,  the  first  entitled,  "  Ein  Moment  aiis 
den  ^Mittheilungen '  des  Co7isisto7'ialrath  Kdhler  ilber  das 
'  Leben  tmd  die  Schriften '  seines  Vaters,  beleiLchtet  von  E. 
von  Hahnenfeld,"  Braunsberg,  1856  ;  the  second,  '^Die 
religiose  Beivegung  zu  Konigsberg,'"  etc.,  ib.,  1858.  He 
was  called  home  March  20,  1868,  and  his  excellent  con- 
sort followed  him  in  1873.  The  blessing  of  those  good 
parents  rests  upon  their  children.  Friedrich,  the  present 
lord  of  the  manor,  and  his  amiable,  kindly  wife,  imitate 
in  every  respect  the  noble  example  of  their  sainted  pre- 
decessors ;  and  three  children,  as  well  as  the  presence  of 

*  See  p.  138. 


198  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

their  good  aunts,  the  daughters  of  our  Hahnenfeld,  con- 
tribute their  share  in  preserving  the  happiness  of  the 
dear  home  where  Ebel  lived  until  1848.  May  the  bless- 
ing of  God  Almighty  long  continue  among  them.  "  The 
memory  of  the  just  is  blessed." 

In  the  spring  of  1 848  it  was  thought  necessary  that 
Ebel,  whose  health  had  become  affected  by  incessant 
toil,  exposure,  and  grief,  should  visit  Marienbad,  in  Bo- 
hemia, the  virtue  of  whose  waters  had  been  very  bene- 
ficial to  him  before.  Count  Kanitz  had  two  years  before 
(1846),  for  similar  reasons,  retired  from  office*  and  gone 
to  Italy  in  quest  of  health.  It  was  agreed  that  the  Count- 
ess and  he  should  meet  the  Ebels  at  Marienbad,  and 
there  they  formed  the  plan  of  living  together  at  Meran, 
n  the  Tyrol,  which  had  been  specially  recommended  to 
them. 

And  that  plan  was  carried  out ;  the  friends  who  spent 
two  delightful  years  together  at  Meran  were  Ebel  and 
his  family,  Count  and  Countess  Kanitz,  and  Countess 
Ida.  There,  in  the  presence  of  that  beautiful,  majestic 
nature,  where  Meran  nestles  in  the  bosom  of  the  most 
beautiful  valley  of  the  Tyrol,  the  "Motherland"  and 
the  "  Paradise  of  the  Tyrol,"  as  the  Tyrolese  call  it,  on 
the  banks  of  the  Passer,  in  an  ancient  Carthusian  monas- 
tery, romantically  situated  with  an  outlook  upon  the  ever- 
lasting mountains,  the  beautiful  highlands,  and  the  en- 
chanting vale,  the  northern  w^anderers  sat  down  to  rest. 
The  poetic  mind  of  the  Countess  Ida  expatiated  on  the 
ever  changing  but  ever  charming  glories  of  that  sunny 
spot,  as  the  reader  may  see  by  reference  to  the  poem. 
Die  IVendung,  given  in  Appendix  C.     As  her  eye  ranged 

*  See  p,  159. 


REST.  199 

over  the  lofty  mountain  chain  and  beheld  on  their  rocky- 
altar  the  smoking  clouds,  it  was  to  her  symbolic  of  the 
kinship  of  earth  and  heaven  ;  as  it  traversed  downwards 
over  the  emerald  velvet  of  the  hanging  gardens  into  the 
umbrageous  windings  of  the  fertile  valley,  where  the 
peach  and  the  almond  pair,  the  one  stretching  its  rosy 
arms  to  heaven,  and  the  other  adorning  it  with  lily  blos- 
soms, it  feasted  on  the  wilderness  of  vineyards,  with 
their  glossy  leaves  and  purple  clusters  (the  delight  of  the 
Meranese  and  many  a  feeble  one  coming  from  afar  to 
that  fascinating  spot  for  the  grape-cure),  the  silver  groves 
of  the  olive,  the  beautiful  fig-tree,  which  thrice  a  year 
bears  fruit  to  the  occupant  of  the  rocks,  on  whose  tops, 
under  the  eternal  white,  stand  kindly,  modest  churches, 
and  rosy  dawn  softly  reflected  in  the  limpid  ice  under  an 
ever  mellow  sun  perpetually  unites  the  beautiful  and  the 
sublime.  The  simplicity,  frankness,  and  piety  of  the 
Tyrolese  are  proverbial,  and  the  beautiful  Alpine  rose 
was  to  Countess  Ida  the  emblem  of  a  handsome  race, 
transmitting  from  the  hoary  past  the  familiar  address  by 
the  baptismal  name  alone.  Then  there  were  excursions 
without  number  along  the  Passer  and  the  Etsch,  and  the 
mountains,  the  Jaufen  the  Mendelspitz,  the  Marlinger, 
the  Rosenstein.  Ah  I  that  Carthusian  cell  was  unspeak- 
ably dear  to  them  all,  so  sweet  a  resting-place,  but  also  a 
working-place,  for  there  the  Countess  not  only  wrote 
poems,  she  likewise  wrote  there  Die  Liebe  zii7'  Wahrheit, 
and  Ebel  began  at  Meran  the  Philosophie  der  heiligcn 
Urkunde;  there  was  music  and  sketching,  and  endless 
delight — it  was  to  all  of  them  an  earthly  paradise  of 
bhssful  repose. 

The  residence  at  Meran  proved  physically  very  bene- 
ficial to  Ebel  and  Kanitz,  and  when  they  felt  stronger 


200  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

they  naturally  thought  of  a  permanent  settlement  else- 
where, and  recrossed  the  mountains. 

In  1850  they  bade  adieu  to  Meran  and  went  to  Hohen- 
eck,  in  the  friendly  Neckar  Valley,  where  Countess  Ida 
had  decided  permanently  to  locate,  and  bought  a  coun- 
trj'-'Seat,  of  course,  not  for  herself  only,  but  likewise  for 
the  Ebel  family,  of  which  she  regarded  herself  a  member. 
Kanitz  lived  first  for  some  time  at  Stetten,  in  Hohen- 
zollern,  and  in  1854  he  too  settled  down  at  Lud wigs- 
burg,  near  by,  with  summer  visits  to  Hoheneck. 

About  a  year  later  came  the  sorrowful  tidings  that 
Theodor,  Ebel's  youngest  son,  who,  upon  the  comple- 
tion of  his  university  course,  had  passed  an  excellent 
examination  as  doctor  of  philosophy  and  principal 
teacher,  and  received  an  appointment,  succumbed  to  a 
complication  of  hepatic  and  pulmonary  troubles.  It  was 
a  sad  blow,  but  as  he  had  been  a  great  sufferer,  his  re- 
lease from  pain  was  the  sweet  in  the  bitter  cup  ;  he  fell 
asleep  in  Jesus,  and  that  was  a  precious  consolation ; 
they  sorrowed  indeed,  but  they  sorrowed  like  Christians, 
and  Ebel  turned  to  the  beautiful  and  triumphant  pas- 
sages I  Cor.  XV.  12-58,  and  i  Thess.  iv.  13-18  for  com- 
fort, saying  he  was  content  and  resigned,  and  grateful 
for  his  deliverance,  and  rejoiced  for  the  sufferer's  sake. 


''Er  ist  ensranoen 

Aller  Noth  und  Pein,  die  tins  noch  halt  gefaiigen" 


Mrs.  Ebel,  ever  cheerful  and  courageous,  felt  his  de- 
parture as  only  a  mother  can  feel,  and  her  tender  heart 
sought  refuge  in  tears  which  she  could  not  restrain,  and 
gave  vent  to  her  grief. 

Hoheneck  is  a  small  village  ;  the  people  are  poor,  for 


^ 

V 


^14^/*^  A\^y^ 


Fac-simile  of  an  inscription  in  the  hand-writing  of  Ebel  on  the  fly-leaf  of  a  Gesang- 
buch  bought  on  his  arrival  at  Hoheneck. 

The  two  Greek  letters  at  the  top  are  the  alpha  and  omega,  and  illustrate  how  Ebel 
did  and  held  everything  in  Jesus. 

The  stanza  itself  characterizes  his  love  of  Jesus,  and  the  feelings  with  which  he 
greeted  the  congenial  companionship  of  the  strongly  biblical  Wiirttembcrgers. 


REST.  201 

the  most  part  laborers  In  the  vineyards  which  clothe  the 
hillsides  ;  some  also  mechanics ;  but  they  are  a  true, 
warm-hearted,  simple  folk,  devout  and,  like  many  Wlirt- 
tembergers,  earnest  Christians.  The  arrival  of  Ebel  and 
Countess  Ida  was  a  great  blessing  to  them  everyways. 
Ebel's  active  and  creative  mind  found  in  that  haven  of 
rest  ample  leisure  for  the  production  of  several  very  im- 
portant works.  In  1852  he  published  Grundzilge  der  Er- 
kenntttiss  der  Wahrheit ;  in  1 854-1 855-1 85 6,  Die  Philo- 
sophie  der  heiligen  Urkimde,  and  some  minor  essays. 
Countess  Ida  wrote,  and  published  in  1856,  Wissen- 
schaft  und  Bibel. 

What  with  these  literary  pursuits,  the  delightful  com- 
panionship of  congenial  friends,  the  resources  of  refined 
culture,  the  reading  of  good  books,  the  diversions  of 
music  and  painting,  the  family  life  at  Hoheneck  was 
singularly  happy.  A  member  of  the  family  speaks  of  it 
in  her  letters  to  me  as  "  heaven  upon  earth."  The  terrible 
religious  suit  was  rarely  so  much  as  mentioned  ;  it  be- 
longed to  the  past,  and  Ebel  deemed  it  one  of  the  bless- 
ings for  which  he  felt  peculiarly  grateful,  that  he  never 
dreajut  of  it.  God  had  given  him  a  cheerful,  happy  dis- 
position, he  abounded  in  humor  and  was  a  delightful 
conversationalist ;  and  when  he  and  Kanitz,  the  Countess 
Ida  and  Mrs.  Ebel  began  to  talk  of  the  past  they  had 
themes  vastly  more  pleasant  to  discuss  than  the  miseries 
of  the  religious  suit.  There  were  old  and  fond  remi- 
niscences and  associations  which  they  had  in  common. 
There  was  one,  e.  g.,  that  took  them  back  to  the  sunny 
past  when  Ebel  was  still  at  Hermsdorf,  and  Kanitz  a  gay 
cavalier  and  Countess  Ida  unmarried,  and  the  news  came 
to  Konigsberg  that  their  young  friend  Ebel  had  been  so 
great  a  sufferer  in  the  loss  of  his  belongings  by  the  war. 


202  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

The  genial  poet  Max  von  Schenkendorf,  a  fast  friend  of 
Ebel,  took  it  into  his  head  to  do  something  for  him.  The 
Auerswaids,  it  will  be  remembered,  were  very  hospitable 
and  their  house  the  centre  of  whatever  was  refined  and 
noble.  At  that  time  (i  806-1 809)  the  royal  family  lived 
with  them  in  the  castle.  Among  other  agrei}ients  they 
had  set  up  a  private  theatre,  and  members  of  the  Auers- 
wald  family  and  their  young  friends  cultivated  private 
theatricals.  Schenkendorf  sometimes  composed  the  pieces 
and  assigned  the  parts.  Well,  he  interested  Kanitz,  the 
Countess  Ida,  and  her  fiance  Count  von  der  Groben,  and 
others,  to  get  up  a  representation  with  an  admission,  the 
proceeds  to  benefit  a  young  clergyman  (Ebel)  who  had 
been  injured  by  the  war.  This  was  duly  announced, 
and  the  royal  family  as  well  as  many  other  distinguished 
people  appeared  in  goodly  numbers,  and  everything  went 
off  to  the  entire  satisfaction  of  all  concerned,  and  the 
proceeds  were  sent  to  Hermsdorf.  Kanitz  appeared 
that  night  in  the  character  of  a  parson.  That  was  a 
grand  joke  and  occasioned  much  merriment.  Yes,  Mrs. 
Ebel  would  say,  when  she  came  as  bride  to  Konigsberg, 
Kanitz  was  a  recognized  leader,  a  veritable  maitre  de 
plaisir^  the  man  "  who  made  thunder  and  lightning,"  and 
that  would,  of  course,  be  irresistible,  to  think  of  that 
grave  and  learned  judge,  a  sexagenarian,  in  that  way. 
And  Countess  Ida  would  join  in  and  tell  how  fond  her 
hero  was  of  Ebel,  which  would  be  confirmed  by  Mrs. 
Ebel  who  remembered  how  he,  naturally  somewhat  re- 
served, was  so  delighted  to  see  him  on  one  occasion  that 
he  shook  him  by  the  head. 

In  connection  with  the  period  to  which  this  charming 
reminiscence  belongs,  it  affords  me  pleasure  to  introduce 
a  passage  from  the  autobiography  of  Count  Charles  of 


REST.  203 

Miinchow,*  sent  by  a  friend,  which  incidentally  illustrates 
the  social  life  at  Konigsberg  and  introduces  quite  a 
number  of  persons  with  whom  we  have  already  made 
acquaintance. 

"  Through  the  instrumentality  of  my  friend  Count  Wilhehu 
von  der  Groben,  who  was  engaged  to  Miss  Ida,  the  second 
dauo-hter  of  the  governor,  I  was  introduced  to  the  Auerswald 
family,  an  introducdon  to  which  I  am  greatly  indebted  for 
my  social  culture.  The  tone  in  that  noble  family  was  a  hap- 
py mixture  of  the  loftiest  refinement,  and  informal,  gesthetic 
mirth.  Occasionally  I  met  there  scholars,  artists  and  distin- 
guished strangers  ;  among  the  younger  visitors  of  the  house 
were  amateurs  of  the  fine  arts,  some  of  them  my  particular 
friends,  ^.^.,  Max  von  Schenkendorf  the  poet,  the  Counts 
Ernst  and  Karl  Kanitz  who  painted,  and  Count  Wilhelm  von 
der  Groben,  who  had  an  excellent  tenor  voice.  Miss  Ida,  a 
most  amiable  young  lady,  combined  great  talents  with  an 
unusual  intellect.  She  wrote  poems,  and  hers  was  altogether 
an  eminently  tender,  poetical  feminine  tem.perament.  .  .  . 
A  singularly  amiable  young  man  was  the  nephew  of  Mrs. 
von  Auerswald,  Charles  Count  of  Dohna-Schlodien.  I  made 
also  at  that  time  the  acquaintance  of  his  tutor  Dr.  Ebel,  the 
archdeacon  and  preacher  of  the  Old-Town  Church,  the  most 
valuable  acquaintance  I  ever  made,  and  which  affected  the 
whole  of  my  subsequent  life," 

There  is  a  mysterious  chain  by  which  friends  separated 
by  great  distance,  without  preconcerted  arrangement,  at 
momentous  periods  of  their  existence  are  brought  into 
rapport,  a  term  here  used  to  designate  uncommon  near- 
ness in  thought  and  feeling.  That  such  a  rapport 
exists  will  probably  be  admitted  on  all  hands,  however 
much  authorities  may  differ  as  to  its   explanation.     A 

*See  p.  141. 


204  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

curious  instance  seems  to  be  the  following.  The  name 
of  Frau  Consentius  has  been  mentioned  in  these  pages.* 
That  excellent  lady  died  at  Konigsberg  about  sunset, 
September  7,  1854.  In  the  same  hour,  Ebel  and  his 
family  were  on  their  way  from  Marienbad  (where  they 
had  spent  some  time  for  his  especial  benefit)  to  Hohen- 
eck,  near  the  neighborhood  of  Lichtenfels  in  Bavaria. 
They  noticed  from  their  carriage  a  singularly  beautiful 
illumination  ;  the  air  was  clear  and  the  heavens  were  re- 
splendent in  azure,  crimson  and  golden  tints,  suggestive 
to  them  of  the  heavenly  Jerusalem,  so  Ebel  led  and  the 
others  joined  in  singing  the  beautiful  stanza  : 

"  IVie  herrlich  ist  die  netie  Welt 
Die  Gott  den  Frommett  vorbehillt, 
Kein  Alensch  kanii  sie  erwerben. 
O  Jesii  !    Herr  der  Herrlichkeit  ! 
Dii  hast  die  Stdtf  aiich  niir  bereit\ 
Hilf  sie  uiir  aiich  ererben  ! 
Einen  kleinen  Blick  i7t  jene  Freudenscene 
Goiiii'  mir  Schwache7i — 
Mir  den  Abschied  leicht  zii  viachen  !" 

In  that  particular  hour,  perhaps  while  the  last  three 
lines  were  being  sung,  the  spirit  of  that  ripe  Christian 
burst  its  earthly  prison-house  and  soared  on  high.  Her 
then  only  surviving  daughter  soon  after  her  bereavement 
took  up  her  permanent  home  at  Hoheneck  (1855),  in  order 
to  be  near  her  dearest  friends  till  death  did  them  part 
(she  died  in  1865). 

Perhaps  the  most  touching  and  most  beautiful  of  the 
many  red-letter  days  in  the  calendar  of  that  happy 
Hoheneck  life  was  November   23,   1856,  the  jubilee  of 

*  See  p.  143. 


REST.  205 

Ebel's  ordination.  It  was  a  day  of  solemn  rejoicing  and 
profound  gratitude  to  Lord  God  Almighty,  and  the 
measure  of  Ebel's  bliss  was  full  to  overflowing,  when 
faithful  members  of  his  Old-Town  congregation  caused 
to  be  presented  to  him  a  fine  silver  goblet,  lined  with 
gold,  exhibiting  among  other  inscriptions  these  two  :  ^'  In 
memory  of  fifty  years  consecrated  to  the  service  of  the 
Most  High,  Novr.  23,  1806  to  Novr.  23,  1856  ; "  and 
"  Heaven  and  earth  shall  pass  away,  but  my  words  shall 
not  pass  away."  (Matth.  xxiv.  25).  They  were  well 
chosen  and  carried  a  profound  meaning.  The  Scripture 
citation  gives  the  text  of  the  sermon  preached  at  his 
ordination,*  and  emphasizes  the  fact  that  the  kind  donors 
intended  it  to  characterize  his  blessed  ministry,  while 
the  first  inscription  was  a  silent  protest  against  the  unjust 
sentence,  and  an  eloquent  avowal  that  in  spite  of  it,  he 
was  their  loved  pastor  still,  and  that  they  delighted  to 
take  part  in  that  touching  jubilee. 

Another  annual  red-letter  day  was  the  fourth  of  March, 
Ebel's  birthday,  which  was  always  celebrated  with  pecul- 
iar rejoicing,  when  each  and  all  would  try  their  utmost 
to  gladden  him  with  the  very  best  and  most  beautiful 
tokens  their  love  could  devise.  By  a  singular  coincidence 
it  became  likewise  the  day  of  Countess  Ida's  departure. 
The  association  must  be  my  apology  for  a  chronological 
anticipation.  That  departure  did  not  take  place  until 
1868,  and  the  interval  between  that  year  and  1856,  our 
last  date,  besides  the  appearance  of  the  remarkable  work 
Wissenschaft  und  Bibel,\  which  she  wrote  in  her  sixty- 
fifth  year,  was  filled  with  acts  of  self-denial  and  benevo- 
lence.    As  in  mind,  in  faith,  in  love  she  retained  the 

^  See  p.  39  t  See  Appendix  C. 


206  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

ardor  and  freshness  of  youth  to  the  last,  so  she  was 
physically  free  from  sickness,  and  only  fatigued.  Miss 
Ebel,  to  whom  Ida  was  a  second  mother  and  an  elder 
sister,  and  who  loved  and  loves  her  beyond  expression, 
gives  this  touching  account  of  her  death  : 

"  In  the  afternoon  of  that  day  she  called  me,  with  a  joyous 
ring  in  her  voice,  from  the  adjoining  room,  and  when 
I  answered  the  summons  she  laid  herself  in  my  arms,  sweetly 
closed  her  eyes  and  gently  breathed  her  last.  Our  physi- 
cian, astounded  at  what  had  occurred,  said :  '  The  countess 
has  not  tasted  the  bitterness  of  death,'  and  pointing  to  her 
sleeping  countenance,  added :  '  The  picture  of  peace.'  Thus 
the  fourth  day  of  March  is  to  us 

"Father's  birthday  into  the  life  of  earth, 
Ida's  birthday  into  the  life  of  heaven. 

*'  My  mother,  like  myself  the  recipient  of  such  untold  love 
from  the  departed,  opened,  as  was  her  wont,  the  Bible  at 
random,  and  it  was  like  light  from  above  as  her  eyes  fell  on : 
'  But  the  souls  of  the  righteous  are  in  the  hand  of  God,  and 
there  shall  no  torment  touch  them.  In  the  sight  of  the 
unwise  they  seem  to  die,  and  their  departure  is  taken  for 
misery,  and  their  going  from  us  to  be  utter  destruction :  but 
they  are  in  peace.  For  though  they  be  punished  in  the  sight 
of  men,  yet  is  their  hope  full  of  immortality.  And  having 
been  a  little  chastised,  they  shall  be  greatly  rewarded:  for 
God  proved  them,  and  found  them  worthy  for  himself  As 
gold  in  the  furnace  hath  he  tried  them,  and  received  them  as 
a  burnt  offering.  And  in  the  time  of  their  visitation  they 
shall  shine,  and  run  to  and  fro  like  sparks  among  the 
stubble.  They  shall  judge  the  nations,  and  have  dominion 
over  the  people,  and  their  Lord  shall  reign  forever.  They 
that  put  their  trust  in  him  shall  understand  the  truth :  and 
such  as  be  faithful  in  love  shall  abide  with  him,  for  grace  and 
mercy  is  to  his  saints,  and  he  hath  care  for  his  elect." — 
(Wisd.  iii.  1-9.) 


REST.  207 

A  more  appropriate  passage,  telling  in  almost  every 
word,  could  not  be  found  in  any  other  part  of  the 
Bible  ;  it  reads  as  if  it  had  been  expressly  composed  for 
her,  and  the  manner  of  its  finding,  also,  was  an  ineffably 
sweet  consolation  to  her  sorrowing  friends. 

A  great  trouble  and  grief  to  Ebel  and  his  friends  was 
the  persistent  repetition  and  distortion  of  the  calumnies 
so  assiduously  circulated  at  the  time  of  the  persecution, 
by  the  press  and  in  works  of  reference.  How  by  the 
"  Aufklarung  "  and  the  indomitable  energy  of  Kanitz, 
all  this  has  been  changed  is  known  to  the  reader.  It  is 
very  pleasant  to  think,  however,  that  before  the  ''  Auf- 
klarung "  had  been  published,  and  during  the  lifetime 
of  Ebel,  there  appeared  in  1861,  in  Wagner's  Staats—  und 
Gesellschafts—  Lexicon  the  first  of  a  long  line  of  articles  in 
vindication  of  his  memory,  from  which  instar  omnium  a 
passage  is  here  given  for  two  reasons  :  First,  because  it 
is  the  only  one  that  Ebel  saw,  and  proved  a  veritable 
balm  to  his  wounded  spirit  ;  secondly,  because  its  very 
existence  was  unknown  to  the  writer  until  within  the  last 
few  weeks,  when  it  was  kindly  forwarded  to  him,  and 
it  confirms  the  views  of  the  whole  matter  advocated  in 
these  pages.  The  article  in  question  begins  thus  : 
"  Ebel,  Johann  Wilhelm.  This  doctor  of  philosophy, 
and  preacher  at  Konigsberg,  in  Prussia,  with  George 
Heinrich  Diestel,  his  brother  minister  and  brother  in 
tribulation  (whom  on  that  account  we  include  in  this 
article),  in  spite  of  the  entire  and  thorough  confutation 
of  the  charges  preferred  against  them,  and  in  utter  dis- 
regard of  the  results  of  the  great  state-suit  acquitting 
them  (1842)  of  the  charge  of  founding  a  sect,  is  men- 
tioned in  modern  church  history  in  a  manner  that 
renders  it  absolutely  necessary  to  remind  historians  of 


208  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

the  first  duties  of  historical  justice."  After  enumerat- 
ing the  works  whose  pages  are  disfigured  and  disgraced 
by  such  false  and  frivolous  statements,  the  author  con- 
tinues :  "  To  say  nothing  of  pamphlets,  the  current 
popular  press,  and  liberal  *  compilations  {e.g.y  Das  Con- 
fer satiojis  Lexico7i  der  letzteii  zehn  Jahre,  von  Reich  en- 
bach,  Leipzig,  1844),  there  runs  through  the  most  widely 
circulated  manuals  and  text-books  of  history,  an  accu- 
sation which,  in  spite  of  the  acquitting  judgment  of  the 
Berlin  Kammergericht,  their  learned  authors  have  for- 
borne to  examine  and  investigate.  Even  before  the 
termination  of  the  suit  the  published  apologies  of  Ebel 
and  Diestel  (given  below)  contained  data  sufficient  to 
test  the  lithographed  communications,  as  well  as  those 
of  von  Wegnern,  but  they  were  not  looked  at  any  more 
than  the  work  of  Mrs.  von  Bardeleben  (also  mentioned 

below) But    scholars    cannot    afford    any 

longer  to  ignore  the  thorough  work  of  E.  von  Hahnen- 
feld  {Die  religiose  Bewegung,  etc.),  unless  they  wish  to 
issue  the  certificate  of  their  moral  death  in  the  field  of 
historical  inquiry.  A  former  pamphlet  by  the  same 
author  :  {Ein  Moment  aus  den  Mittheilungen  des  Consis- 
torialraths  Kdhler,  etc.),  might  bring  home  to  the  con- 
sciousness of  the  men  of  the  lecture-room  the  superiority 
of  a  pure  conscience  and  a  well-founded  conviction  to 
the  superficiality  of  the  learned  in  their  evasions,  as- 
saults and  admissions.  The  time  will  yet  come  for  the 
due  appreciation  of  the  work  of  Frau  von  Bardeleben. 
In  the  crisis  which  soon  must  overtake  liberalism,  the 
liberalism  of  Konigsberg  and  its  mythical  personification 
in  Schon  (who  played  so  important  a  part  in  the  suit 

*  Liberal,  /.  e.,  skeptical. 


REST.  209 

against  Ebel  and  Diestel)  will  doubtless  be  justly  dealt 
with."  A  copy  of  Wagner's  article  was  thoughtfully 
sent  to  Ebel,  who  exclaimed  after  its  perusal  con- 
cerning the  author  :  "  Charity — rejoiceth  not  in  iniquity, 
but  rejoiceth  in^the  truth."  (i  Cor.  xiii.,  6),  and  got 
some  one  to  read  out  in  the  family  the  hymn : 

"  Mei7i  Dankopfer,  Herr,  ich  bringe. 
So  mir  recht  von  Herzen  geht, 
Ueber  deine  Wunderdinge 
Wird  mein  Geist  zu  dir  erhbht, 
Gott,  ichfreue  mich,  mein  Leben 
1st  ganz  deinem  Lob  ergeben,"  etc.* 

It  had  come  in  time,  three  weeks  later  it  would  have 
come  too  late,  for  a  long-expected  message,  a  message 
joyously  though  not  impatiently  expected,  arrived  before 
it  began  to  dawn  at  Hoheneck  in  the  early  hours  of 
August  1 8th,  1 86 1,  and  the  spirit  of  Ebel  saw  the  sun 
which  never  rises  and  never  sets  in  the  many-mansioned 
house.  The  event  was  one  which  he  knew  in  those 
days  of  chronic  infirmity,  occasionally  stayed  by  the  use 
of  the  Kreuzbrunnen  at  Marienbad,  must  soon  set  in. 
The  excessive  heat  of  that  summer  hastened  it.  He 
looked  forward  with  unspeakable  delight  to  the  time 
when  he  should  "  get  home."  He  would  speak  about  it 
with  the  family,  and  in  his  love  and  tenderness  comfort 
them  by  instancing-  the  example  of  St.  Paul,  who  had 
looked  forward  with  such  unmingled  delight  to  the  time 

*  I  have  to  apologize  for  not  translating  the  hymns  and  poetry 
introduced.  Literal  translation  frequently  murders,  and  almost 
always  vitiates  the  thought.  Free  translation  is  not  much  better, 
for  it  often  becomes  either  paraphrase,  or  misinterpretation.  A 
poet  only  can  do  justice  to  the  matter. 


210  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

when  he  should  meet  Jesus.  Why  should  they  grudge 
him  the  same  delight  ?  His  dear  friend  Kanitz  was  very 
ill  at  the  time  and  needed  the  utmost  care  ;  he  was 
afraid  that  the  news  of  his  own  departure  might  shock 
him,  and  so  he  said  to  his  family  :  **  Tell  Kanitz  gradu- 
ally." He  had  long  since  forgiven  his  persecutors,  and 
learned  to  pity  them,  and  in  the  spirit  of  the  first  martyr 
to  pray  for  them.  The  last  day  he  spent  on  earth  he 
said  with  great  emphasis  :  "  Tell  all  my  enemies — no,  I 
will  not  call  them  enemies — tell  them  all  that  I  forgive 
them — oh  !  how  do  I  forgive  them."  Towards  evening 
he  exclaimed  :  "  Jesus  is  my  life  ;  "  somewhat  later : 
"  O  Jesus,  Jesus  receive  my  spirit."  He  fell  into  a 
slumber,  and  slept,  gently  breathing,  for  several  hours  ; 
the  breath  grew  fainter,  and  in  the  early  morning  watch 
the  spirit  had  left  the  tenement  of  clay.  They  said  of 
him  in  life  and  they  said  of  him  in  death,  that  his  noble 
face  resembled  Christ,  others  that  it  was  the  counte- 
nance of  an  angel.  Those  expressions,  of  course,  are 
speculative  and  imaginary,  but  he  was,  what  kindly  folk 
wished  to  convey  by  them,  a  true  follower  of  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  and  all  his  life  long  an  angel  of  peace  and 
love.  What  he  was  to  his  Old-Town  church,  to  all  his 
dear  friends,  and  to  his  family,  has  been  abundantly 
described  in  the  preceding  pages  ;  but  it  remains  to  be 
told  how  dearly  the  good  Wiirttembergers  loved  him  ; 
the  good  minister  at  Hoheneck,  Pastor  Romer,  deemed 
it  one  of  the  greatest  blessings  of  his  life  to  enjoy  the 
friendship  of  Ebel  and  Countess  Ida.  A  plain  working- 
man  was  so  overcome  with  sorrow  that  he  gave  vent  to 
it  in  the  words  :  *'  When  I  heard  that  the  doctor  had 
died,  I  felt  like  standing  on  my  head — the  house  is 
empty,  the  dearest  has  gone."      Nor  was  this  feeling 


REST.  211 

evanescent  ;  those  plain,  true,  simple  folk  feel  strongly, 
deeply  and  lastingly  ;  quite  recently,  twenty  years  after 
Ebel's  departure,  a  good  Hohenecker  told  his  daughter 
with  great  enthusiasm — for  the  man  is  advanced  in  years 
and  labor  is  no  longer  easy  to  him  :  "  Miss,  if  your  father 
could  be  brought  back  from  heaven,  /  should  carry  him 
here  f 

It  was  a  matter  of  great  anxiety  to  the  family  to  have 
the  remains  of  the  departed  as  near  to  them  as  possible, 
There  was,  indeed,  the  Hoheneck  "  God's-acre,"  as  the 
Germans  beautifully  call  a  cemetery  or  burying-place, 
but  it  lies  near  the  Neckar,  and  is  damp,  and  on  that  ac- 
count it  was  not  favored.  But  the  garden,  on  high 
ground,  suggested  itself  for  the  purpose,  and  gave  rise  to 
the  desire,  with  the  permission  of  the  proper  authorities, 
of  having  a  family  vault  made,  and  to  erect  a  chapel 
over  it.  That  permission  was  sought,  and  very  early  in 
the  morning  of  August  21,  1861,  an  express  messenger 
brought  the  good  tidings  that  the  application  had  been 
granted,  to  wit  :  that  the  family  was  allowed  to  build  a 
vault,  etc.,  and  to  deposit  the  precious  remains  tempo- 
rarily in  the  summer-house  of  the  park,  a  structure  of 
solid  masonry  that  had  stood  there  for  many  years.  A 
few  hours  later  the  bells  of  the  Hoheneck  church  began 
to  toll,  and  twelve  men,  who  had  volunteered  to  act  as 
carriers,  lifted  the  coffin,  rendered  invisible  under  a  hil- 
lock of  floral  offerings,  and  bore  it,  accompanied  by  the 
family  and  a  large  number  of  friends  from  near  and  far, 
along  the  winding  path,  on  which  flowers  had  been 
spread,  to  its  temporary  resting-place.  The  burgess  of 
the  village  and  Pastor  Romer  led  the  procession,  and  the 
latter  officiated. 

Then  the  work  was  taken  in  hand  and  the  vault  com- 


212  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

pleted  during  the  mild  winter  of  1S61-62;  a  Gothic 
hexagonal  chapel  of  gray  sandstone  was  built  over  it ; 
over  the  portal  appears  the  figure  of  an  angel  bearing  in 
his  hands  a  scroll  with  the  inscription,  in  gilt  letters,  "  I 
live,  ye  shall  live  also  "  {/c/i  lebe^  imd  ihr  sollt  auch  lebeii) 
— John  xiv.  19.  No  accident  marred  the  successful  com- 
pletion of  the  work ;  no  disagreement  or  contention 
among  the  laborers  employed  in  it,  and  the  architect 
gratefully  confessed  that  the  genius  of  peace  had  rested 
on  the  whole  work  from  first  to  last.  When  summer  re- 
turned and  the  sun  shone  bright,  the  bell  of  the  Hohen- 
eck  Church  was  tolled  again,  and  another  procession 
carried  the  departed  from  the  summer-house  to  the 
height  of  the  garden,  where,  in  the  midst  of  trees,  stands 
the  memorial  chapel.  Pastor  Romer  duly  consecrated 
the  spot,  and  committed  to  the  bosom  of  the  earth  the 
mortal  remains  of  Johann  Wilhelm  E bd.  An  appropriate 
oration  on  the  Resurrection  was  pronounced  by  him,  of 
which  this  was  the  concluding  sentence  :  ''  And  may  our 
blessed  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ  be  thy  light  and 
thy  shield,  and  thy  exceeding  great  reward  ;"  and  because 
of  the  victorious  faith  of  Ebel  he  called  the  chapel ''  The 
Chapel  of  the  Resurrection,"  but  it  is  generally  known  as 
"  the  Gothic  Hall  "  or  the  "  Mausoleum."  There,  in 
that  beautiful,  lofty,  sunny  spot  are  enshrined  his  mortal 
remains  ;  his  immortal  remains  live  in  his  works  and  the 
memory  of  his  blessed  ministry.  A  touching  instance  of 
the  value  attached  to  those  works  is  that  which  follows  : 
Some  time  after  Ebel's  departure  Pastor  Romer  made 
this  announcement  to  his  congregation  :  The  day  before, 
he  said,  while  preparing  to  discourse  on  Luke  xiv.  16-24, 
he  had  taken  up  Ebel's  sermon  on  "  The  Essentials  of 
the  Christian  Life  "  (  Was  es  gilt  im  Christenthuni),  and 


REST.  213 

found  it  so  superior  to  anything  he  could  say  on  the  sub- 
ject that  he  concluded  it  would  be  more  edifying  to  read 
it  than  to  preach  one  himself,  adding  :  "  You  and  I 
then,  must  imagine  to  sit  at  the  feet  of  this  man,  who  is 
now  in  the  presence  of  God,"  and  then  proceeded  to  read 
the  entire  sermon. 

In  the  summer  of  1863  Mrs.  Ebel's  brother,  Mr.  Bern- 
hardt Leinweber,  the  honest,  warm-hearted  farmer,  the 
same  who  brought  them  a  wain  full  of  farm  produce  on 
the  eve  of  their  departure  from  Konigsberg,  paid  them  a 
visit  at  Hoheneck.  Being  a  stranger  in  the  place,  he 
asked  one  of  the  village  people,  would  he  please  direct 
him  to  the  house  of  the  Ebel  family  ;  he  said  he  came 
from  Prussia  and  wished  to  visit  them.  The  word 
"  Prussia  "  and  the  Prussian  speech  did  not  please  the 
good  Suabian,  who  suspected  the  honest  farmer  of  some 
sinister  purpose,  and  instead  of  complying  with  his  re- 
quest made  answer  :  "  From  Prussia  !  Why  did  you 
Prussians  persecute  Dr.  Ebel,  that  man  of  God,  as  you 
have  done  ?  "  Bernhardt  assured  the  Hohenecker  that 
he  was  quite  innocent  of  the  matter,  that  he  was  Mrs. 
Ebel's  brother,  and  that  he  had  come  solely  for  the  pur- 
pose to  thank  the  family  and  Count  Kanitz  for  all  the 
good  they  had  done  him.  Then  the  Hoheneck  man  be- 
lieved Bernhardt  and  showed  him  the  house.  Countess 
Ida  met  him,  and  extending  her  hand  to  him,  which  he 
kissed,  after  the  simple  and  touching  fashion  of  his 
country,  said  to  him  :  "  Dear  Mr.  Leinweber,  we  are 
glad  that  you  have  come  to  see  us,"  and  he  said  that 
such  a  welcome  was  "  a  cordial "  after  the  critical  recep- 
tion of  the  Hoheneck  villager. 

And  as  betokening  the  value  of  his  example  of  trium- 
phant faith  may  be  mentioned  this  incident  :  In  1869  a 


214  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

gentleman,  a  lawyer,  who  never  knew  Ebel  while  alive, 
visited  the  family  at  Hoheneck,  and  was  so  strongly  im- 
pressed with  what  he  heard  of  him  that  he  wrote  to  the 
family  afterwards  : 

"  Before  I  went  to  Hoheneck  I  had  read  his  sermons,  but  I 
did  not  understand  then,  as  I  do  now,  the  effect  they  must  have 
produced  on  his  hearers.  He  preached  Christ  risen  from 
the  dead,  but  that  is  nothing  peculiar  ;  have  not  many  hun- 
dred thousand  preachers  before  him,  or  his  contemporaries, 
or  others  after  him,  preached  the  same  doctrine  ?  But  the 
people  believed  Ebel ;  they  received  as  true  his  message  con- 
cerning Jesus  and  the  resurrecdon  ;  he  had  the  gift  of  kin- 
dling the  divine  spark  in  the  hearts  of  his  hearers.  This  is 
the  conviction  which  has  grown  on  me  during  my  visit  to 
Hoheneck  ;  I  judge  of  the  tree  by  its  fruits.  The  people  be- 
lieved what  he  preached,  and  they  believed  that  he  believed 
itj  that  is  the  great  difference  between  him  and  so  many 
other  preachers,  '  That  was  a  beautiful  sermon,  if  it  only 
were  true  what  he  has  preached  about  Jesus  and  our  resur- 
rection ! '  Hopeful  doubts  !  That  is  the  most  favorable  com- 
ment I  remember  in  connection  with  the  most  beautiful  ser- 
mons I  ever  heard  preached  at  Easter  and  the  Ascension 
Day.  Assurance  of  faith,  absolute  and  immovable,  is  a  plant 
of  rare  growth  ;  and  my  belief  is  that  the  belief  of  the  resur- 
rection of  Christ  is  a  living  belief  in  the  colony  at  Hoheneck, 
and  that  it  has  been  wrought  by  Ebel,  and  that  is  the  most 
important  thing  I  carried  away  with  me  from  Hoheneck."  * 

In  the  month  of  March,  1868,  the  vault  was  opened  to 
receive  the  mortal  remains  of  the  sweet  Countess  Ida. 
During  the  oration  there  appeared  in  the  heavens  a 
beautiful  rainbow,  a  touching  reminiscence  of  the  lofty 

"  The  daughter  of  this  gentleman,  Miss  Mina  Steinwender,  lives 
with  Miss  Ebel  at  Villa  Ida. 


REST.  215 


'OJ 


Christian  sentiment  in  one  of  her  poems  (25  "  Erfulluns 
in  Morgenwache,  p.  52)  which  allegorizes  the  rainbow  as 
the  precursor  of  the  covenant  of  peace,  the  visible  wit- 
ness of  the  grace  of  God  inclining  to  earth,  betokening 
in  the  splendor  of  each  of  the  color-members  the  splen- 
dor of  the  inward  peace  of  every  member  of  the  kingdom 
of  peace,  and  in  their  harmonious  blending  that  that 
peace  is  the  result  of  the  united  weapons  of  truth. 

In  December,  1869,  the  same  vault  received  a  third 
occupant.  This  time  it  was  the  truly  good  and  patient 
widowed  Augusta  Ebel,  whose  body  they  lowered  to  rest 
by  the  side  of  her  husband's.  She  too  had  known  during 
a  brief  illness  that  it  meant  going  home,  although  her 
heart  was  full  to  overflowing  with  the  tenderest  love  for  her 
surviving  children  and  all  that  loved  Jesus,  yet  her  truly 
Christian  rejoicing  in  the  expected,  long  yearned-for  ad- 
mission to  the  dear  home  above  was  strongest  in  her. 
She  prayed  much  with  her  children,  and  her  mind  being 
stored  with  the  rich  hymnology  of  the  Lutheran  Church, 
she  loved  not  only  to  repeat  but  to  join  in  the  singing  of 
these  tender  and  pathetic  hymns.  ''  In  the  name  of  God 
I  go  !  "  she  joyfully  exclaimed,  and  it  is  truly  touching 
and  edifying  to  put  on  record  the  fact  that  while  the 
children  were  singing — 

^'Fiihre  inich  endlich,  0  Jesu^  in's  ewige  Leben, 
Welches  du  Allen,  die  glaubeii,  versprochen  zit  geben, 
Da  ich  bet  Go  it, 
Ohne  Noth,  Jammer  und  Tod, 
Ewig  in  Freuden  werd'  schweben,'''' 

her  soul  soared  aloft  on  angels'  wings,  and  when  the 
music  ceased  she  had  ceased  to  breathe.  The  spectacle 
of  her  triumphant  faith  softened  the  deep  grief  of  that 


2l6  FAITH   VICTORIOUS. 

separation,  and  was  the  balm  of  heaven  to  the  stricken 
ones. 

The  letter  which  brought  me  these  sorrowful  tidings 
conveyed  likewise  the  equally  sorrowful  intelligence  of 
the  demise,  only  a  few  days  before,  of  the  noble  and 
faithful  Kanitz.  His  great  work,  the  Aufkldrutig,  was 
beginning  to  bear  abundant  fruit.  It  had  renewed  his 
strength  and  rejuvenated  him,  and  from  far  and  near 
came  constant  tokens  that  the  blessing  of  heaven  rested 
upon  that  work  and  labor  of  love.  He  had  succeeded 
in  establishing  the  innocence  and  vindicating  the  memory 
of  his  sainted  friend  ;  he  had  proved  to  the  world  that 
he  had  been  persecuted  for  righteousness'  sake,  and, 
under  God,  that  excellent  man  had  brought  forth  his 
righteousness  as  the  light  and  his  judgment  as  the  noon- 
day (Ps.  xxxvii.  6).  That  was  the  happiness  of  his  de- 
clining days,  still  further  heightened  by  his  constant 
thoughtfulness  for  others,  by  countless  benefactions,  and 
by  ever  dwelling  on  some  new  device  to  gladden  his 
friends.  Like  Ebel's  widow,  he  lived  to  fourscore  years, 
and  when  a  brief  illness  laid  him  low,  in  full,  clear  con- 
sciousness of  the  impending  change,  and  in  joyous  ex- 
pectation of  the  rest  in  the  heavenly  home,  he  told  his 
friends  ''to  greet  them  all,"  and  committing  his  soul  to 
God  he  fell  asleep,  and  his  mortal  remains  lie  by  the  side 
of  Countess  Charlotte  in  God's-acre  at  Ludwigsburg. 

The  kind  friend  who  wrote  me  all  this  in  a  beautiful 
letter  touchingly  informed  me  that  I  was  infallibly 
included  in  the  number  of  the  all  to  whom  Kanitz 
sent  his  valedictory  greetings  ;  she,  too,  the  exemplary, 
devoted,  faithful,  sainted  Matilda  von  Derschau,  belongs 
(since  1878)  to  the  increasing  number  of  my  friends  in 
the  home  above  ;  and  her  remains  have  found  their  last 


REST.  217 

resting-place  in  the    same    God's-acre   at   Ludwigsburg 

alongside  the  dear  ones  to  whom  for  so  many  years  she 

had  so  tenderly  and  lovingly  ministered. 

****** 

The  composition  of  this  volume  has  been  a  blessing  to 
my  own  soul  and  a  delight  ;  may  it  prove  a  blessing  and 
a  joy  to  all  that  read  it.  Of  Ebel  and  Kanitz,  the 
Countess  Ida,  and  all  the  dear  ones  whom  I  have  en- 
deavored, however  imperfectly,  lovingly  to  commemorate, 
I  would  say,  in  conclusion,  to  their  surviving  friends  by 
way  of  grateful  remembrance,  "  The  memory  of  the  just 
is  blessed  "  (Prov.  x.  7),  and  to  all,  in  view  of  what  they 
were,  and  did,  and  suffered,  and  the  beautiful  and  edify- 
ing example  they  set  us,  our  precursors,  I  trust  and  pray, 
to  that  dear  home  which  they  have  found,  "  I  heard 
a  voice  from  heaven  saying  unto  me,  write.  Blessed  are 
the  dead  which  die  in  the  Lord  from  henceforth  ;  yea, 
saith  the  Spirit,  that  they  may  rest  from  their  labors;  and 
their  works  do  follow  them"  (Rev.  xiv.  13). 


SERMONS. 

THE  GREAT  CHANGE  WROUGHT  IN  US  BY  THE  HOLY  SPIRIT. 
Ezekiel  XXXVI.  26,  27. 


Whitsun-Day,  May  26,  1822. 


"  God  be  merciful  unto  us  and  bless  us  ;  and  cause  his  face 
to  shine  upon  us,  that  thy  way  may  be  known  upon  earth, 
thy  saving  health  among-  all  nations.  Let  the  people  praise 
thee,  O  God  ;  let  all  the  people  praise  thee.  Let  the  words 
of  our  mouth  and  the  meditation  of  our  heart  be  acceptable 
in  thy  sight,  O  Lord,  our  strength  and  our  redeemer.  Cre- 
ate in  us  a  clean  heart,  O  God,  and  renew  a  right  spirit  within 
us.  Cast  us  not  away  from  thy  presence,  and  take  not  thy 
Holy  Spirit  from  us;  restore  unto  us  the  joy  of  thy  salvation, 
and  uphold  us  with  thy  free  Spirit,  for  we  will  teach  trans- 
gressors thy  ways,  and  sinners  shall  be  converted  unto  thee. 
Halleluia  !  Amen." 


The  hand  of  the  Lord  came  upon  the  prophet  and  carried 
him  out  in  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord,  and  set  him  down  in  the 
midst  of  a  valley  which  was  full  of  bones,  and  caused  him  to 
pass  by  them  round  about ;  and  behold,  there  were  very  many 
in  the  open  valley ;  and  lo,  they  were  very  dry.  And  he  said 
unto  him.  Son  of  man,  can  these  bones  live  ?  And  the 
prophet  said,  O  Lord  God,  thou  knowest.  Again  he  said 
unto  him.  Prophesy  upon  these  bones,  and  say  unto  them  : 

219 


220  APPENDIX   A. 

O  ye  dry  bones,  hear  the  word  of  the  Lord.  Thus  saith  the 
Lord  unto  these  bones :  Behold,  I  will  cause  breath  to  enter 
into  you,  and  ye  shall  live.  And  I  will  lay  sinews  upon  you, 
and  will  bring  up  flesh  upon  you,  and  cover  you  with  skin, 
and  put  breath  in  you,  and  ye  shall  live  ;  and  ye  shall  know 
that  I  am  the  Lord.  So  he  prophesied  as  he  was  command- 
ed, and  as  he  prophesied  there  was  a  noise,  and  behold,  a 
shaking,  and  the  bones  came  together,  bone  to  his  bone. 
And  when  he  beheld,  lo,  the  sinews  and  the  flesh  came  up 
upon  them,  and  the  skin  covered  them  above;  but  there  was 
no  breath  in  them.  Then  said  the  Lord,  Prophesy  unto  the 
wind,  prophesy,  son  of  man,  and  say  to  the  wind,  Thus  saith 
■the  Lord  God :  Come  from  the  four  winds,  O  breath,  and 
breathe  upon  these  slain,  that  they  may  live.  So  he  prophe- 
sied as  he  had  commanded  him,  and  the  breath  came  into 
them,  and  they  lived,  and  stood  upon  their  feet,  an  exceeding 
great  army. 

When  will  these  words  be  fulfilled  in  the  people  to  whom 
they  apply  primarily  ?  For  these  bones  are  the  house  of 
Israel.  Their  hope  seems  lost,  and,  as  far  as  we  are  able  to 
tell,  their  case  is  past  all  remedy.  And  when  will  they  be 
fulfilled  in  us,  who  are  as  dry  as  they  ?  Or  are  we  not  dried 
up?  Is  there  in  our  midst  the  life  of  the  first  Christians, 
faith,  hope  and  charity  .'*  The  gospel  indeed  is  preached 
among  us,  the  gospel  of  the  kingdom  of  God;  its  sound 
has  gone  forth  into  all  the  world,  and  it  has  been  proclaimed 
from  this  pulpit  freely  and  constantly  three  hundred  years. 
But  have  we  borne  fruit  ?  Have  we  walked  in  the  Spirit — we 
that  are  destined  to  live  in  the  Spirit — and  are  we  really 
alive  ?  We  all,  I  ask,  who  outwardly  receive  the  memorable 
events  of  this  day,  when  a  sound  from  heaven  as  of  a  rushing, 
mighty  wind  filled  the  house,  and  the  Spirit  of  God  filled  the 
hearts  of  the  first  followers  of  the  Lord,  as  with  one  accord 
they  were  assembled  together  ?  Have  we  risen  from  the  dead, 
we  who  soon  after  our  birth  were  solemnly  dedicated  to  the 
Lord  in  Holy  Baptism  ?  Is  the  divine  breath  within  us  ?  Do 
we  live  in  a  higher  element  ?     Are  we  conscious  of  being 


SERMONS.  221 

translated  into  the  heavenly  image  ?  Is  Christ  in  us  the 
hope  of  glory  ?  These  very  questions  may  be  far  from  wel- 
come to  all,  for  they  are  the  voice  of  a  watchman,  bidding  all 
to  rise  from  dead  works  to  serve  the  living  God;  and  how  loath 
are  the  idle  to  be  wakened  from  sleep  ?  The  dreamer,  in  his 
sweet  illusion,  fancies  such  a  call  inconvenient  and  trouble- 
some, though  it  be  intended  to  draw  him  back  from  the  edge 
of  a  precipice  down  which  he  is  in  imminent  peril  to  fall. 
Hence  the  question  whether  we  be  alive,  and  not  dried  up, 
may  not  be  welcome  to  those  who  are  required  to  apply  it  to 
themselves  and  not  to  others. 

Nevertheless  I  am  bidden  :  "  Prophesy,  son  of  man,  and 
say  to  the  wind,  Thus  saith  the  Lord  God,  Come,  O  wind, 
and  breathe  upon  these  slain,  that  they  may  be  born  out  of 
God  !  "  I  am  always  bidden  to  proclaim  this,  whenever  I 
stand  up  in  your  midst  as  an  appointed  preacher  of  the 
Word  of  God  ;  but  to-day — the  aniversary  of  divine  events,  of 
the  founding  of  the  religion  of  the  Spirit,  of  which  w^e  profess 
to  be  members — to-day,  I  say,  I  feel  doubly  the  obligation  of 
this  solemn  charge  ;  for  the  Lord  will  establish  a  covenant  of 
peace  with  us.  It  is  to  be  an  everlasting  covenant ;  He  will 
preserve  and  multiply  us  ;  we  are  to  be  His  peculiar* 
people  ;  He  will  be  our  God,  and  we  shall  be  His  people. 

"My  son,  give  me  thy  heart,"  he  kindly  says  to  each  and 
all ;  "  give  me  thy  heart,  and  let  thine  eyes  observe  my  ways  !"' 
If  on  the  one  hand  we  are  constrained  to  own  that  this  en- 
treaty of  the  Lord  of  the  world  is  infinitely  honorable  to  man, 
and  that  on  our  compliance  with  it  depends  both  our  own 
welfare  and  that  of  those  near  and  dear  to  us — our  temporal 
welfare  not  less  than  our  spiritual — and  on  the  other,  we  cannot 
shut  our  eyes  to  the  great  difficulty  of  men  to  withdraw  their 
heart  from  earth,  and  to  receive  the  mind  of  Christ,  the 
promises  of  these  days  that  the  Spirit  of  God  shall  be  poured 
out  upon  all  flesh,  will  be  very  beneficial  to  us,  in  order  that 
our  heart  be  torn  from  earth,  and  that  faith,  hope  and  charity 

*  His  property. 


222  APPENDIX   A. 

be  planted  and  rooted  therein.  They  will  be  more  beneficial 
as  we  realize  the  tumult  and  confusion  of  the  times,  the  great 
and  momentous  events  with  which  they  are  big,  the  all  but 
universal  effort  to  vindicate  the  rights  of  man,  but  the  singular 
disregard  of  the  necessity  to  restore  the  dignity  of  our  nature  ; 
how  we  strive  after  manhood  and  majority,  in  spite  of  our 
childishness  and  trifling,  our  w^ant  of  discipline  and  self-con- 
secration ;  how  with  our  superficiality  and  selfishness  we  are 
entangled  in  a  false  civilization  which  we  fondly  call  culture, 
threatening  to  engulf  us  and  our  children  on  every  side,  and 
show  all  the  time  a  security  and  carelessness,  as  if  we  were  in 
profoundest  peace  and  out  of  danger.  Reflecting  on  such  a 
state  of  things,  we  give  vent  to  our  feelings  in  offering  the 
prayer  of  Isaiah  (Ixiv.  i,  2)  :  "Oh  that  thou  wouldest  rend 
the  heavens,  that  thou  wouldest  come  down,  that  the  moun- 
tains might  flow  down  at  thy  presence,  as  when  the  melting 
fire  burneth,  the  fire  causeth  the  waters  to  boil,  to  make  thy 
name  known  to  thine  adversaries,  that  the  nations  may 
tremble  at  thy  presence,  through  the  terrible  things  which 
thou  doest  and  w^e  look  not  for." 

Ezekiel  xxxvi.  26,  27. 

"  And  a  new  heart  also  will  I  give  you,  and  a  new  spirit  will  I 
put  within  you  :  and  I  will  take  away  the  stony  heart  out  of  your 
flesh,  and  I  will  give  you  a  heart  of  flesh,  and  I  will  put  my  spirit 
within  you,  and  cause  you  to  walk  in  my  statutes,  and  ye  shall  keep 
my  judgments,  and  do  them." 

How  welcome  must  these  words  be  to  all  that  long  for  help 
out  of  Zion,  and  desire  to  be  saved  from  this  wicked  world  ; 
to  be  translated  out  of  the  dominion  of  darkness  into  the  king- 
dom of  the  Son  of  God,  to  have  part  in  the  inheritance  incor- 
ruptible, undefiled,  and  that  fadeth  not  away,  reserved  for  us  in 
heaven.  Yea,  these  words  of  prophecy  are  most  welcome  to 
us  ;  for  they  contain  the  Father's  gracious  promise  that  He 
will  save  us  from  all  unrighteousness,  and  sanctify  to  Himself 
a  peculiar  people,  zealous  of  good  works.  The  storms  of 
centuries  have  been  unable  to  extinguish  the  splendor  of  this 


SERMONS.  223 

glorious  promise,  renewing  again  and  again  the  blessed  as- 
surance of  our  heavenly  Father  that  the  world  should  not 
perish,  in  that  He  has  given  us  a  new  spirit  and  a  new  heart, 
turning  the  heart  of  stone  into  a  heart  of  flesh,  and  changing 
us  into  a  God-fearing  people  that  keep  His  commandments 
and  statutes  to  do  them.  "  Look  unto  me  and  be  ye  saved,  all 
the  ends  of  the  earth  ;  for  I  am  God  and  none  else."  He  still 
declares  :  "  Unto  me  every  knee  shall  bow,  every  tongue  shall 
swear  ;  in  the  Lord  is  all  righteousness  and  strength." 

Let  us  then  consecrate  this  feast  to  the  consideration  of  the 
great  truth  that  we  also  shall  be  saved  from  all  unrighteous- 
ness, and  clad  in  our  wedding  garment  of  righteousness  and 
salvation,  attain  the  praise  of  the  glory  of  His  grace,  which 
has  been  revealed  to  us.  Now  the  great  change  which  the 
Holy  Spirit  operates  in  us,  referred  to  in  the  words  of  our 
text,  is  a  theme  worthy  of  the  solemnity  of  this  hour,  and  ap- 
propriate to  the  event  we  celebrate,  and  we  will  now  inquire 

1.  What  it  is? 

2.  Hov/  it  is  wrought  ? 

And,  O  Lord  God,  cause  us  to  realize  to-day  that  thou 
desirest  not  that  any  of  us  should  perish  ;  let  thy  Holy  Spirit 
dwell  in  our  midst  in  the  plentitude  of  His  power ;  let  us 
taste  and  see  that  thou  art  good,  and  know  the  exceeding 
greatness  of  thy  power  to  us-ward  who  believe  according  to 
the  working  of  the  mighty  power  which  thou  hast  wrought 
in  Christ  when  thou  didst  raise  Him  from  the  dead  and  set 
Him  at  thy  own  right  hand  in  the  heavens.  Create  in  us  a 
clean  heart,  O  God,  and  renew  a  constant  spirit  within  us ; 
cast  us  not  away  from  thy  presence,  and  take  not  thy  Holy 
Spirit  from  us.  Restore  unto  us  thy  joy  of  thy  salvation,  and 
uphold  us  with  thy  free  Spirit.     Amen. 

L 

What  is  the  great  change  wrought  in  us  by  the  Holy  Spirit  ? 
This  is  the  question  we  have  now  to  consider.  It  is  very  re- 
markable that  Christianity  insists  not  only  on  melioration, 
but  wherever  regeneration  is  referred  to,  not  only  on  a  partial 


224  APPENDIX   A. 

change  of  our  nature,  but  on  a  total  change  in  the  spirit  of 
our  mind.  "  Except  a  man  be  born  again,"  our  Lord  said  to 
Micodemus,  "he  cannot  see  the  kingdom  of  God."  The  mere 
avoidance  of  gross  excesses  of  sin,  the  bare  show  of  outward 
decency  without  inward  change  in  the  hidden  depths  of  our 
being,  is  of  no  value  before  God,  and  will  not  avail  us  any- 
thing in  the  day  when  we  shall  receive  the  just  recompense 
of  reward  for  the  works  we  have  done  in  the  body,  be  they 
good  or  bad.  For  after  the  description  of  the  Word  of  God 
man  is  corrupt  through  and  through,  and  the  more  he  strives 
to  avoid  the  gross  excesses  of  sin,  so  much  the  more  is  he 
wont  to  foster  a  spirit  of  pride  and  self-complacency,  which 
is  an  abomination  before  God.  In  the  graphic  language  of 
the  Bible,  the  whole  head  is  so  sick,  and  the  whole  heart  so 
faint,  that  they  must  be  recreated  in  order  to  restore  us  to 
the  image  of  Him  that  has  called  us  out  of  darkness  into 
light.  Therefore  nothing  short  of  a  new  creature  is  availing 
in  Christ  Jesus,  a  totally  changed  mind,  an  entirely  re-created 
nature,  infinitely  more  than  we  are  able  to  do  in  our  own 
strength,  vastly  more  than  the  highest  measure  of  human 
strength  has  ever  been  able  to  achieve.  We  should  faint  and 
despair  of  our  deliverance  and  salvation,  if  our  conversion 
and  renovation  had  to  be  accomplished  by  our  own  strength, 
therefore,  saith  the  Lord  God,  "I  will  give  you  a  new  heart 
and  a  new  constant  spirit,  I  will  do  it,  saith  Jehovah."  Then, 
forsooth,  the  faint  and  timid  heart  takes  courage,  saying : 

Whom  the  Mighty  One  will  aid, 
Whom  the  Highest  will  exalt — 
Nevermore  can  perish  ! 

If  He  is  willing,  and  we  are  willing,  our  case  will  succeed. 
But  what  is  it  that  the  Lord  willeth  ?  and  what  is  the  great 
change  he  operates  in  us,  so  that  we  may  know  what  we 
ought  to  will  ?  "A  new  heart  will  I  give  you,  and  a  new 
spirit  will  I  put  within  you,"  saith  the  Lord.  His  re-creation 
therefore  is  twofold,  it  relates  both  to  the  heart  and  to  the 
spirit. 


SERMONS.  225 

This  is  an  important  distinction,  for  the  state  of  the  mind 
is  one  thing,  and  the  bent  of  our  doings  another.  Certain 
states  of  feeling  are  ascribed  to  the  heart,  the  direction  of  our 
efforts  belongs  to  the  spirit;  but  both  the  heart  and  the  spirit 
are  liable  to  error,  naturally  very  perverse,  and  manifoldly 
corrupted. 

We  look  first  at  the  heart  to  know  what  God  the  Lord 
desires  to  effect  therein.     He  will  create  in  us  a  new  heart, 
for  by  nature  we  have  a  stony  heart ;  and  this  stony  heart 
He  will  change  into  a  heart  of  flesh,  or  according  to  the  sense. 
of  the  text,  He  will  recreate  it  into  a  good  and  tender  heart. 
The  heart,  the  focus  of  our  life,  embraces  all  the  sensations 
excited  by  outward  impressions,  or  the  events  of  the  inward 
life.     It  is  the  heart  which  causes  us  to  feel,  after  the  natural- 
ness of  our  being,  either  defiant  or  timid  as  long  as  the  Spirit 
of  the  Lord  has  not  yet  subdued  and  renewed  it  after  the 
image  of  the  first-begotten  of  the  Father,  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ.     The  heart  is  stony,  insensible  of  the  benefits  of  God, 
unfit  to  receive  them  and  to  respond  to  His  entreaties  and 
monitions — stony  for  the  reception  of  His  tender  mercies. 
Or  can  you  deny  having  walked  many  years  in  the  vanity  of 
your  heart,  without  considering  that  your  life,  and  its  many 
blessing's,  are  the  gift  of  God,   and  that  His  visitation  has 
preserved  your  spirit  ?     Can  you  deny  having  many  a  year, 
many  a  time,  in  carnal  self-reliance  and  in  the  pride  of  your 
imagined  strength  ascribed  to  your  own  ability  or  wisdom 
the  unmerited  mercies  of  God  ?     Will  you  deny,  that  even 
when  you  were  better   instructed,  you  have  been  idle  and 
reluctant  to  praise  the  Lord  for  His  unceasing  love,  daily  re- 
peated with  the  rising  of  His  sun  ?     Where  are  the  tender 
feelings  for  the  all-merciful  God,  your  gratitude  to  the  Giver 
of  every  good  and  perfect  gift,  and  your  cheerful  obedience 
to  the  Father  of  lights  ?     It  is  this  insensibility  of  the  divine 
mercies  which  makes  the  heart  stony,  renders  it  impatient 
in  affliction,  and  fills  it  with  arrogant  pride  in  prosperity. 

But  it  is  also  stony  through  being  unable  to  receive  the 
divine  exhortations.     It  is  God's  gracious  purpose  to  draw  us 


226  APPENDIX  A. 

to  Himself  by  means  of  loving  kindness  and  to  conquer  our 
hearts  by  love.  Many  a  beam  from  the  invisible  government 
of  His  good  Providence  has  he  caused  to  descend  on  us  to 
lighten  the  darkness  of  our  hearts,  many  a  word  of  His  has  He 
thrust  into  us  with  a  force  that  filled  us  with  fear  and  trem- 
bling, and  many  a  providence  so  turned  as  to  make  us  doubt 
the  Tightness  of  our  past  course.  But  did  we  perceive  and 
understand  forthwith  this  voice  of  our  heavenly  Father  }  Or 
did  we  avert  our  face  from  Him,  and  seek  for  diversion,  when 
it  was  His  purpose  to  admonish  us  through  crosses  and  suf- 
ferings ?  What  more  common  than  the  well-meant  counsel 
tendered  to  our  suffering  brethren  to  seek  diversion.?  Just  as  if 
the  salvation  of  God  and  peace  of  mind  could  be  found  in  diver- 
sion !  See,  how  stony  the  heart  is  ;  when  God  kindly  touches 
it  that  it  may  exult  for  joy  and  love  Him  who  first  loved  us, 
it  grows  haughty,  careless  and  arrogant ;  and  when  He 
smites  it  to  make  it  observe  the  crooked  and  perverse  way 
on  which  it  is  running  to  destruction,  it  runs  away  from  His 
school  and  seeks  for  diversion,  that  the  fatherly  correction 
may  not  yield  fruit.  The  heart  of  man  is  a  stony  heart  ! 
These  words  are  true  and  certain. 

And  this  heart  is  designed  to  grow  good  and  tender,  to 
become  sensible  of  the  benefits  of  God,  to  taste  and  see  how 
good  He  is,  to  delight  in  Him,  and  to  hear  His  voice,  to  note 
His  hints  and  monitions,  to  observe  and  apply  them,  and  to 
turn  them  to  good  account.  A  tender  and  a  good  heart  we 
are  to  receive,  one  that  receives  the  seed  of  the  word,  and  is 
not  like  the  stony  ground  in  which  the  divine  seed  cannot 
take  root,  or  the  thorny  field  where  the  cares  of  this  world 
and  riches  choke  the  good  seed  ;  but  a  heart  of  flesh  is  one 
which,  though  we  cannot  leave  the  world,  remains  true  to 
God,  is  constantly  on  the  alert,  quick  to  perceive  the  leadings 
and  directions  of  the  divine  Spirit,  and  thankful  to  receive 
and  apply  to  our  benefit  the  monitions  and  warnings  of  our 
God,  no  matter  when  or  whence  they  come. 

This  is,  however,  only  part  of  the  great  change  wrought  by 
the  divine  Spirit,  for  the  text  adds  :  "  I  will  put  a  new  spirit 


SERMONS.  227 

within  you."  The  spirit,  dear  brethren,  is  the  efificient  power 
in  us,  which  directs  our  efforts,  guides  our  work  for  the  good 
of  others  and  of  ourselves,  our  plans  and  hopes,  and  indicates 
how  our  diversified  talents  and  abilities  should  be  applied. 

More  or  less  all  men  are  endowed  with  spirit  or  mind  ; 
there  are  many  persons  in  our  time,  of  great  wealth  of  mind 
(geistreic/i),  who  under  the  progressive  development  of  our 
age  have  really  reached  a  very  high  degree  of  mental  culture. 
But  what  does  that  avail,  if  the  old  mind  or  spirit  remains 
unchanged  ?  for  the  old  mind  is  dark,  perverse  and  uncertain. 
It  is  dark  and  perverse,  for  it  will  not  allow  that  the  things 
which  God  has  joined  together  should  remain  in  their  order 
and  proper  relations.  For  God  has  raised  man  above  all  his 
fellow-creatures  in  that  He  breathed  into  him  a  rational,  free 
soul,  and  endowed  that  soul  as -well  as  the  body  with  sundry 
powers  and  capacities  tending  to  beautify  and  enhance  the 
happiness  of  his  life.  But  He  has  assigned  to  each  of  these 
capacities  its  own  fixed  order,  and  more  especially  established 
the  supremacy  of  man  in  that  as  a  rational  and  free  agent,  he 
should  ever  examine  himself  by  subordination  to  the  judg- 
ment of  the  divine  Spirit,  to  learn  and  prove  what  is  that 
good,  and  acceptable  and  perfect  will  of  God.  But  we  know 
that  the  efforts  of  men  do  not  generally  tend  in  this  direction. 
The  use  of  the  understanding  is  to  them  only  an  exercise  of 
their  capacities,  or  a  means  to  glitter  before  the  world,  seeing 
that  they  esteem  more  highly  the  praise  of  man  than  the 
praise  of  God.  They  are  ever  learning  and  yet  never  attain- 
ing the  knowledge  of  the  truth. 

The  great  truths  of  our  reconciliation  with  God  through 
Jesus  Christ  our  Lord,  of  the  restoration  of  the  divine  image 
in  us,  of  our  future  destiny,  are  seemingly  to  the  great  mass 
of  our  fellow-men,  as  far  as  their  speech  enables  us  to  judge, 
as  if  the'y  did  not  concern  them  at  all.  Has  there  not  been  a 
time  when  men  did,  and  are  there  not  many  persons  living 
at  this  time  who  do  not  hesitate  frankly  to  declare  that  our 
relations  to  the  things  invisible  are  beyond  the  reach  of 
scientific  inquiry,  outside  the  province  of  knowledge,  and 


228  APPENDIX  A. 

only  objects  of  faith  ?  and  under  the  pretext  of  such  imaginary 
faith  men  carelessly  continued  to  live  after  their  own  desire, 
and  ultimately  reached  the  pass  that  they  did  not  believe  any- 
thing whatever.  In  this  way  religion  w^as  drawn  into  the 
realm  of  the  imaginary  ;  it  was  alleged  that  it  was  the  object 
of  feeling,  and  under  the  influence  of  this  hallucination  men 
fell  into  phantastic  imaginings,  conjured  for  themselves  thou- 
sands of  other  worlds,  forgetting  to  seek  their  happiness  in 
this  world  and  to  do  their  duty.  Their  imagination  literally 
ran  riot  when  they  excluded  from  the  loftiest  affairs  the 
noblest,  that  is,  the  reasoning  faculties  of  our  being.  And 
this  phantastic  aberration  they  called  divine,  because  it 
originated  in  their  own  breast,  and  because  even  honest  men 
are  frequently  tempted  to  follow  their  own  mind,  if  they  have 
not  previously  been  renewed  by  the  Spirit  of  God.  For,  if  I 
may  use  the  expression,  there  are  three  spirits  that  reign  in 
us  :  the  spirit  of  selfishness,  which  would  fain  uphold  its 
prejudices  and  opinions,  no  matter  how  great  their  delusion  ; 
the  spirit  of  the  prince  of  darkness,  the  evil  spirit  of  the  prince 
of  this  world,  who  "  hath  blinded  the  eyes  of  them  which  be- 
lieve not,"*  addressing  us  through  the  evil  example  and  the 
errors  of  others,  and  displaying  them  before  our  eyes  so  that 
they  dazzle  and  poison  us  ;  and  lastly  the  good  spirit,  the 
Spirit  of  God,  testifying  His  presence  to  every  man.  But  see- 
ing that  all  those  three  spirits  speak  to  us  within,  men  fondly 
imagine  that  they  are  always  hearing  the  voice  of  the  good 
spirit,  because  they  are  loth  to  believe  that  they  are  naturally 
subject  to  the  evil  spirit,  and  therefore  they  do  not  try  the 
spirits  whether  they  are  from  God.  If  this  were  not  true, 
how  could  men  have  uttered  so  much  egregious  foolishness  ?. 
If  it  were  not  so,  the  striving  after  liberty  and  equality,  after 
the  rights  of  man  and  a  higher  culture,  would  not  have 
brought  so  much  grief  and  sorrow  into  the  world.  Dear 
brethren,  let  us  pray  God  to  grant  unto  us  and  our  children 


*  2  Cor.  iv.  4. 


SERMONS.  229 

a  new  spirit  which  does  not  part  asunder  the  head  and  the 
heart,  which  God  has  joined  together ;  then  shall  we  be 
illumined  in  heavenly  light,  "  and  shall  with  open  face,  re- 
flecting as  in  a  mirror  the  glory  of  the  Lord,  be  changed 
into  the  same  image  from  glory  to  glory."  - 

And  this  is  also  a  constant,  a  certain  spirit.  For  the  Holy 
Spirit  taught  by  facts,  and  with  facts  God  did  connect  His 
operations  and  effects.  He  founded  His  kingdom  on  earth, 
when  the  people  of  God  were  led  out  of  Egypt  by  mighty 
signs  and  wonders ;  when  'mid  thunder  and  lightning  and 
mighty  voices  the  law  was  as  on  this  day  given  from  heaven 
on  Mount  Sinai. 

This  law  of  the  Most  High  is  one  and  immutable.  Heaven 
and  earth  shall  pass  away,  but  these  words  shall  not  pass 
away  :  "  Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy  heart, 
and  with  all  thy  soul,  and  with  all  thy  mind,  and  with  all  thy 
strength,  and  thy  neighbor  as  thyself.''  These  words  ought 
to  contain  the  fundamental  constitution  of  all  lands  and  of 
all  nations.  The  great  events  at  the  birth  of  Jesus  Christ, 
during  His  earthly  life  at  His  resurrection  and  ascension, 
are  also  so  many  pledges  and  facts  of  the  infallible  truth  of 
the  book  which  we  regard  as  the  record  and  deposit  of  our 
faith,  as  a  light  that  shineth  in  a  dark  place  until  the  day 
dawn  and  the  day  star  arise  in  our  hearts.  Therefore  let 
us  accept  this  word  of  the  divine  message,  and  try  by  it  all 
our  own  views,  and  those  of  others,  every  sermon  and  every 
book,  whether  they  conform  to  it.  Then  He  will  be  able  to 
work  within  us  after  His  spirit  a  new  and  certain  spirit, 
"  that  we  be  not  tossed  to  and  fro,  and  carried  about  with 
every  wind  of  doctrine,  by  the  sleight  of  men  and  cunning 
craftiness,  whereby  they  lie  in  wait  to  deceive;"!  then  we 
shall  have  a  firm  foundation  for  our  faith,  and  a  conviction 
which  cannot  be  shaken,  and  a  certain  spirit  then  rules  us  all 
the  while,  causing  us  to  acknowledge  the  truth  everywhere, 


2  Cor.  iii.  18.  f  Eph 


230  APPENDIX  A. 

and  to  walk  after  the  truth,  and  thus  all  our  efforts  and  en- 
deavors will  also  be  renewed.  Love  as  the  motive  force  of 
them  all  begins  to  be  operative,  and  is  the  fulfilling  of  the 
law.  Then  we  shall  have  no  other  mind  than  that  of  doing 
the  will  of  our  heavenly  Father,  and  in  every  relation  and 
circumstance  of  life  there  will  arise  the  thought  that  we  love 
and  serve  Him  who  first  loved  us,  and  render  those  happy 
who  are  near  and  around  us. 

O  dear  and  precious  book,  would  that  thou  didst  return  to 
our  homes  and  families  !  then  the  spirit  who  dwells  in  thee 
would  be  shed  on  our  age,  and  the  great  change  for  which 
we  yearn,  be  wrought  in  our  fellow-men,  even  the  change 
promised  in  the  words  of  our  text — there  would  be  created 
in  us  a  tender,  clean  and  good  heart,  and  a  new  and  a  cer- 
tain spirit. 

II. 

But  how  does  this  change  take  place  within  us  ?  It  is  well 
worth  while  that  we  grow  familiar  with  what  transpires  in 
our  mind,  and  take  a  view  of  our  true  condition  there.  It  is 
not  by  any  means  general,  this  introspection,  for  as  has  been 
already  intimated,  our  age  is  wont  to  dispatch  religiousness 
into  the  realm  of  sentimentality  and  imagination,  just  as  a 
former  age  had  locked  it  up  in  formality,  and  another  allowed 
it  to  perish  in  cold  rationalism.  For  men  are  prone  to  avoid 
worshipping  God  in  spirit  and  in  truth,  prone  to  delude 
themselves  in  this  matter,  because  the  vital  remembrance  of 
God  places  them  at  His  bar,  and  therefore  they  seek,  as  it 
were,  to  slip  away.  But  our  heavenly  Father  wants  us  to 
worship  Him  that  way.  On  that  account  it  behooves  us  to 
study  ourselves,  to  inquire  if  the  great  change  we  have  en- 
deavored to  portray,  has  really  taken  place  in  us,  if  we  have 
received  His  spirit  to  know  and  adore  Him,  as  we  ought. 
In  his  incomparably  beautiful  epistle  to  the  Romans  the 
Apostle  St.  Paul  describes  the  different  states  of  our  spiritual 
nature  (ch.  vii.  7,  8)  and  their  study  is  not  only  an  appropriate 


SERMONS.  231 

meditation  at  tills  pentecostal  season,  but  fraug-lit  witli  bless- 
ings not  only  to-day  but  for  our  whole  life.  He  distinguishes 
the  state  of  total  unconsciousness  (vii.  7,  8),  in  which  men 
resemble  the  brute  creation,  from  that  of  conscious  resistance 
(vv.  9-14)  in  which  they  recognize  a  law  which  prompts 
them  to  do  the  will  of  God,  accompanied,  however,  by  the 
speedy  discovery  of  another  law  in  their  members  at  variance 
with  the  law  of  God,  warring  against  the  law  of  their  mind, 
and  bringing  them  into  captivity  to  the  law  of  sin,  and  con- 
straining them  severally  to  exclaim  with  the  Apostle  :  "O 
wretched  man  that  I  am  !  Who  shall  deliver  me  from  the 
body  of  this  death  ?"  (vv.  23,  24).  He  further  draws  a 
distinction  between  the  state  in  which  we  begin  to  awake  to 
true  Christian  consciousness  by  the  knowledge  of  Jesus 
Christ  as  our  Saviour,  and,  as  it  were,  stretch  forth  the  hands 
of  our  mind  to  serve  the  law  of  God  (v.  25),  and  the  state 
of  those  who  are  fully  awake,  and  of  whom  he  felt  war- 
ranted to  say:  "There  is  therefore  now  no  condemnation 
to  them  which  are  in  Christ  Jesus  "  (viii.  i)  ;  and  it  is  with 
these  that  we  are  more  especially  concerned  to-day  in  our 
endeavor  to  attain  a  clear  conception  of  our  own  spiritual 
condition. 

The  state  in  which  we  begin  to  grow  awake  differs  from 
the  latter  in  this  way,  that  the  Spirit  of  God  operates  in  the 
former  on  the  heart  in  the  destruction  of  its  stony  nature, 
while  in  the  latter  the  selfsame  spirit  dwells  in  it  and  has  al- 
ready produced  a  good  and  tender  heart.  The  first  state  is 
indispensably  necessary  in  the  work  of  our  regeneration,  but 
those  who  rest  content  therewith,  and  indulge  the  notion 
that  momentary  or  transitory  ebullitions  of  feeling,  good  in- 
tentions, and  impressions  of  holiness  will  suffice,  run  great 
danger  of  relapsing  into  a  state  of  death.  No,  we  must  ad- 
vance to  victory,  to  a  full  and  absolutely  clear  state  of  being 
awakened  and  awake,  and  it  is  the  Spirit  of  God  who  pre- 
pares us,  by  warnings  or  persuasive  entreaties,  for  this  condi- 
tion. 


232  APPENDIX  A. 

Bald  mit  Lieben,  bald  mit  Leiden, 
Kamst  du,  Herr  mein  Gott  zu  mir, 

Dir  mein  Herze  zu  bereiten, 
Mich  ganz  zu  ergeben  dir  ; 

Dass  mein  innerstes  Verlangen, 

Mog'  an  deinem  Willen  hangen. 


Standing  still,  under  the  circumstances,  means  going  back; 
Vv'hen  He  speaks  we  must  hear,  when  He  beckons  we  must 
follow  ;  when  He  causes  us  to  learn  and  experience  the 
misery  and  wretchedness  of  forsaking  Him,  the  obstacles 
caused  by  foolish  and  idle  talking,  when  He  threatens  us 
with  the  terrors  of  His  law  or  sends  us  those  who  by  kindly 
speech  inflame  our  hearts,  or  directs  some  friend  to  strengthen 
and  encourage  us,  or  when  He  enables  us  to  derive  comfort 
from  His  blessed  promises — under  all  these  kindly  leadings 
of  His  good  providence,  we  are  bound  to  follow  Him,  and  not 
only  once,  but  always.  It  is  thus  that  we  are  ever  awakened 
anew,  that  there  is  a  sounding  and  a  stirring,  and  the  dead 
bones  start  into  life — but  woe  to  those  who  fail  to  respond  to 
His  monitions.  Then,  in  order  to  terrify  us  into  obedience. 
He  lias  recourse  to  menace,  and  brings  to  our  consciousness 
the  threatenings  of  His  Word,  which  are  sometimes  very  aw- 
ful and  heartrending,  e.  g.  :  "  Our  God  is  a  consuming  fire  ;" 
"  It  is  a  fearful  thing  to  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  living  God  ;" 
"  Fear  Him  who  is  able  to  destroy  both  soul  and  body  in 
hell ;"  which  depicts  to  us  sin  in  its  most  repulsive  forms,  in 
its  exceeding  sinfulness,  in  its  ravages  which  undermine  and 
destroy  our  peace,  the  happiness  of  the  family,  and  the  pros- 
perity of  nations,  and  causes  us  occasionally  to  experience  in 
our  own  life  the  misery  and  sorrow  which  overtake  men  for 
their  contempt  of  God,  and  not  fearing  Him,  or  to  convince 
us  of  the  sinfulness  of  sin  by  filling  us  with  loathing  of  all 
imbruting  carnality,  to  let  us  feel  the  deadening  influence  of 
trifling,  ungodly  speech,  and  to  estimate  aright  the  perverse- 
ness  of  a  worldly  spirit  in  our  domestic  and  social  relations — 
so  that  we  are  unable  any  longer  to  doubt  that  sin  is  the  ruin 
of  men. 


SERMONS.  233 

But,  on  the  other  hand,  we  should  learn  that  it  is  right- 
eousness which  exalteth  a  people.  Therefore  the  promises  of 
God  concerning  happiness  and  salvation  give  us  most  friendly 
greeting,  bidding  us  expect  it  both  now  and  hereafter,  in  this 
world  and  the  next,  and  directing  us  to  the  assurance  and 
example  of  the  happy  estate  of  those  who  fear  the  Lord  and 
walk  in  His  ways.  God  is  pleased  to  delight  us  with  the 
spectacle  of  happy  mortals,  who  in  consequence  of  unfeigned 
piety  have  been  blessed  by  Him  in  their  temporal  and  spiritual 
affairs,  in  order  that  their  conduct  and  example  may  move 
and  incite  us  to  imitate  them.  He  leads  to  us  kindly  folk 
who  by  sweet,  gentle  and  edifying  words  fill  our  heart  with 
rapturous  delight,  and  inflame  it  with  the  love  of  God  ;  dear 
friends  who  sympathize  with  us,  and  lovingly  draw  us  along 
with  them  to  the  sunny  realms  of  the  heavenly  life.  He 
causes  us  to  experience  blissful  hours,  which  yielding  to  our 
hearts  the  antepast  of  heaven,  secure  them  for  it  forever- 
experiences  causing  us  to  perceive  and  feel  within  ourselves 
the  covenant  of  peace,  which  has  never  been  abolished  by 
God,  and  needs  only  to  be  set  up  by  us  in  order  to  save  us, 
render  us  happy  and  exalt  us  to  the  glorious  liberty  of  the 
children  of  God. 

This  then,  dear  brethren,  is  God's  way,  the  way  of  our 
heavenly  Father,  to  drive  and  terrify  iis  from  the  region  of  the 
shadow  of  death  and  to  entice  us  into  life.  Happy  are  those 
who  attend  to  it,  and  yield  themselves  to  His  gracious  pur- 
poses. "  Lo  !  there  is  a  noise,  and  a  shaking,  and  the  dead 
bones  grow  alive  again."  But  the  careless  and  indifferent, 
unwilling  to  move  forward,  and  satisfied  to  remain  at  a  stand- 
still where  favoring  circumstances  have  placed  them,  deem- 
ing  this  enough,  and  deluding  themselves  into  the  belief  that 
they  have  the  divine  life,  they,  I  say,  will  continue  in  death, 
unless  they  turn  this  very  day,  while  they  hear  this  voice, 
unless  they  do  it  now.  But  if  they  really  and  truly  turn  from 
their  evil  way,  God  will  certainly  succeed  in  bringing  them 
to  their  senses,  to  a  state  of  perfect  waking,  and  create  in 
them  a  new  heart,  a  new  and  constant  spirit. 


234  APPENDIX  A. 

This  being  awake,  dear  friends,  renders  us  conscious  that 
the  lore  of  God  and  the  love  of  man  are  dominant  within  us. 
If  the  love  of  God  has  been  shed  on  us  through  the  Holy- 
Spirit  in  Christ  Jesus,  and  we  have  learned  to  know  and  be- 
lieve how  precious  we  are  unto  God,  then  we  experience  that 
wonderful  and  glorious  change  of  mind  which  thenceforth 
makes  it  our  supreme  delight  to  love  Him,  who  first  loved 
us ;  then  the  beautiful  power  of  love  manifests  its  full  strength, 
and  we  advance  to  a  position  in  which  we  are  able  to  control 
our  desires  and  passions,  to  crush  the  enemy  under  our  feet, 
and  to  exclaim  triumphantly  with  the  Apostle  :  "  I  live,  yet 
not  I,  but  Christ  liveth  in  me."  He  is  my  pattern,  Jesus  Christ 
is  to  me  the  First  and  the  Last,  the  Author  and  Finisher  ot 
my  faith,  His  will  and  purpose  is  my  will  and  purpose  ;  I  seek 
not  my  honor,  but  the  honor  of  my  God  and  Saviour  Jesus 
Christ. 

It  was  the  conviction  that  God  loves  us,  and  was  manifested 
in  that  He  sent  His  only-begotten  Son  into  the  world  that  we 
should  live  through  Him,  which  caused  the  mighty  increase 
of  believers  and  servants  of  the  Lord  on  the  first  day  of 
the  Christian  Pentecost.  And  the  miraculous  power  of  that 
conviction  is  still  operative  and  destined  in  our  time  to  breathe 
upon  the  slain  that  they  may  live,  and  so  many  among  us  as 
open  their  hearts  to  the  entrance  of  that  love,  so  many  it  will 
render  heavenly  minded  and  operative  in  the  service  of  God. 

They  have  found  the  Father,  who  is  full  of  tenderness  and 
love  to  His  children  in  evil  days  or  in  good.  They  rest  in 
His  heart,  quickened  and  refreshed  in  the  blissful  possession 
of  His  love,  and  in  the  joyous  hope  of  their  incorruptible  in- 
heritance in  heaven  above,  they  delight  in  the  assurance  that 
the  sufferings  of  this  present  time  are  not  worthy  to  be  com- 
pared with  the  glory  which  shall  be  revealed  in  us,  freely 
confess  that  all  things  \vork  together  for  their  good,  and  join 
in  the  burst  of  rapture  which  caused  St.  Paul  to  exclaim: 
"  If  God  be  for  us,  who  can  be  against  us  ?  He  that  spared 
not  His  own  Son,  but  delivered  Him  up  for  us  all,  how  shall 
He  not  with  Him  also  freely  give  us  all  things  ?     Who  shall 


SERMONS.  235 

lay  anything  to  the  charge  of  God's  elect  ?  It  is  God  that 
justifieth;  who  is  he  that  condemneth  ?  It  is  Christ  that  died, 
yea,  rather  that  is  risen  again,  who  is  at  the  right  hand  ot 
God,  who  also  maketh  intercession  for  us  !  Who  shall  separate 
us  from  the  love  of  God  ?  Shall  tribulation,  or  distress,  or 
persecution,  or  famine,  or  nakedness,  or  peril,  or  sword  ? 
Nay,  in  all  these  things  we  are  more  than  conquerors  through 
Him  that  loved  us.  For  I  am  persuaded,  that  neither  death, 
nor  life,  nor  angels,  nor  principalities,  nor  powers,  northings 
present,  nor  things  to  come,  nor  height,  nor  depth,  nor  any 
other  created  thing,  shall  be  able  to  separate  us  from  the  love 
of  God  which  is  in  Christ  Jesus  our  Lord."     Amen. 

The   congregation   then   sang    these   stanzas  of  Luther's 
Hymn : 

Nun  bitten  wir  den  heiligen  Geist, 

Und  den  rechten  Glauben  allermeist,  etc. 


Du  werthes  Licht,  gieb  uns  deinen  Schein, 

lychr  uns  Jesum  Christum  erkennen  allein, 

Dass  wir  an  ihm  bleiben, 

Dem  treuen  Heiland, 

Der  uns  bracht  hat 

Zu  dem  rechten  Vaterland.     Kyrie  eleison. 


Du  slisse  Lieb'  schenk  uns  deine  Gunst, 

Lass  uns  empfinden  der  Liebe  Brunst,       ^ 

Dass  wir  ims  von  Herzen 

Einander  lieben 

Und  in  Friede 

Auf  einem  Sinne  bleiben.     Kyrie  eleison. 


236  APPENDIX  A. 


II. 

A  PARADOX. 

"When  I  am  weak,  then  am  I  strong," 

2.  Cor.  xii.  lO. 

Considered  at  Matins. 

O,  Jesu  Christ,  mein  schonstes  Licht, 

Der  du  in  deiner  Seelen, 
So  hoch  uns  liebst,  dass  man  es  nicht 

Aiissprechen  kann  nocli  zahlen: 
Ach  !  dass  das  Herz  dich  wiederum 

Mit  Liebe  und  Verlangen 
^  Mog'  umfangen 

Und  als  dein  Eigenthum 

Nur  einzig  an  Dir  hangen.  *     Amen. 

The  Lord  who  has  mercy  on  us,  dear  brethren,  causes  His 
face  to  shine  upon  us,  to  shine  upon  us  all,  that  we  get  well,  and 
yet  many  among  us  are  ill,  and  only  a  small  number  of  Chris- 
tians realize  the  powers  of  the  world  to  come,  and  have  been 
strengthened  and  are  strong  in  the  inner  man.  Yes,  He  causes 
His  face  to  shine  upon  us,  and  we  feel  how  far  we  still  are 
from  health,  how  little  light  there  is  within  us,  although  the 
splendor  of  the  light  of  His  countenance  is  shed  over  us,  and 
His  peace  is  intended  to  benefit  us  all.  How  is  it  to  be  ac- 
counted for,  unless  it  be  by  our  perverse  disposition  ?  For 
we  must  occupy  a  certain  position  or  attitude  of  heart  in 
order  to  be  able  to  receive  the  radiance  of  God  which  goes 
out  towards  us  from  the  face  of  Jesus  Christ,  His  Son. 

As  many  of  you,  then,  as  desire  the  proper  frame  of  mind  in 
which  the  loving  kindness  of  God  glorifies  itself  and  reflects 
in  us  with  open  face  the  glory  of  the  Lord,  I  entreat  to  unite 
with  me  in  prayer,  that  there  may  be  revealed  to  us  a  proper 
insight  of  our  nothingness  and  His  loving  heart,  that  we  may 

*  These  words  had  been  the  subject  of  a  sermon  the  day  before. 


SERMONS.  237 

become  more  and  more  one  with  Him,  and  that  He  sup  with 
us,  and  we  with  Him.      Otir  Father,  etc. 

Text :  II.  Cor.  xii.  10. 

"  Therefore  I  take  pleasure  in  weaknesses,  in  reproaches,  in  ne- 
cessities, in  persecutions,  in  distresses  for  Christ's  sake  :  for  when  I 
am  taeak,  then  am  I  strong." 

Apparently  these  words  are  a  paradox,  contradict  and 
nullify  each  other.  How  can  lie  that  is  weak  be  strong  ? 
But  it  is  nevertheless  a  pure  and  divine  truth  which  the 
Apostle  here  presents  to  us,  a  truth  based  on  profound  ex- 
perience, betokening  the  very  frame  of  mind  and  disposition 
of  our  heart  which  we  desire,  and  must  possess,  if  the  wisdom 
from  above  is  to  dawn  in  us  like  a  clear  light.  We  must^be 
weak  that  we  may  be  strengthened  in  our  weakness,  accord- 
ing to  the  strength  of  Him  who  is  able  to  do  exceeding  abund- 
antly above  all  that  we  ask  or  think.  That  v/as  St.  Paul's 
own  experience,  and  therefore  he  preferred  to  glory  in  his 
weakness.  Notwithstanding  the  great  advances  he  had  made 
in  the  spiritual  life,  he  reverted  again  and  again  to  this  frame 
of  mind  as  leading  to  yet  greater  progress,  as  unfolding  yet 
greater  treasures  of  knowledge.  "  Most  gladly,"  he  said,  in 
the  verse  preceding  our  text,  "  will  I  rather  glory  in  my  weak- 
7iess  that  the  power  of  Christ  may  rest  upon  me.''  The  per- 
fection, acknowledgment  and  sense  of  our  own  weakness  is 
the  indispensable  prerequisite  of  our  participation  of  the  divine 
power,  and  on  this  account,  when  he  had  besought  the  Lord 
to  deliver  him  from  the  Angel  of  Satan,  who,  in  his  graphic 
language,  was  smiting  him  with  the  fist,  from  the  woe  that 
caused  him  so  much  internal  struggle  and  anguish,  he  was 
told  :  "  ]\Iy  grace  is  sufficient  for  thee,  for  my  strength  is 
made  perfect  in  v/eakness  "  (vv.  7-9).  Now  if  this  truth  was 
the  cardinal  and  central  point  of  the  divine  life  in  which  St. 
Paul  stood,  and,  as  is  emphatically  intimated  in  the  text, 
caused  him  to  derive  therefrom  more  and  more  knowledge, 
how  much  the  rather  may  it  conduce  to  the  growth  of  our 
knowledge  of  spiritual  things.     With  this  end  in  view  we 


238  APPENDIX  A. 

have  chosen  for  our  present  meditation  the  words  of  the 
Apostle : 

"  When  I  am  weak,  then  am  I  strong," 

to  ascertain  :  i.  The  grounds  of  this  truth  ;  and  2.  By  what 
means  we  may  become  weak  in  order  that  the  power  of  God 
may  grow  mighty  in  us. 

I. 

Man  is  a  creature  of  God,  but  a  free  being  endowed  with 
the  powers  and  capacities  of  consciousness.  This  double 
truth  solves  the  riddle  and  removes  the  seeming  contradic- 
tion of  the  apostolic  declaration,  "  When  I  am  weak,  then  am 
I  strong." 

Man  is  a  creature  of  God,  His  handiwork,  and  in  Him  he 
lives  and  moves  and  has  his  being.  Originally,  therefore,  his 
existence  is  derived  from  the  will  of  the  Most  High,  no  less 
than  all  his  powers.  What  have  we  then  which  we  did  not 
receive  ?  And  how  may  the  wants  of  our  body  and  those  of 
the  soul  be  supplied  and  gratified  unless  the  co-operating 
power  of  God  cause  them  to  turn  to  our  profit  and  blessing  ? 
The  Lord  from  heaven  is  before  all,  and  all  things  in  Him  do 
consist.  Life  and  all  its  benefits  flow  from  Him,  and  the  lift- 
ing up  of  His  countenance  preserves  our  breath.  But  though 
this  is  generally  allowed  in  respect  of  our  outward  life,  it  is 
as  generally  disputed  concerning  the  inward  life  of  the  soul ; 
nevertheless  that  inward  spiritual  life  which  we  are  destined 
to  lead,  the  striving  after  the  perfection  of  our  being  in  the 
Holy  Spirit,  though  we  may  resist  it,  and  by  our  sinfulness 
render  the  gracious  purposes  of  God  of  none  effect,  is,  for  all 
that,  the  work  of  divine  grace,  and  has  never  been  begun, 
furthered  and  completed  without  the  assistance  of  God.  This 
is  agreeably  to  reason  and  the  teachings  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 
And  in  this  sense  St.  Paul  declares:  "  Not  that  we  are  suffi- 
cient of  ourselves  to  think  anything,  as  of  ourselves,  but  our 
sufficiency  is  of  God."  "  For  it  is  God  which  worketh  in  you, 
both  to  will  and  to  do  of  His  good  pleasure.'' 


SERMONS.  239 

The  reasonable  reception  of  this  well-founded  truth  into  our 
hearts  affords  us  a  hint  to  the  understanding  of  the  seeming 
paradox  :  "  When  I  am  weak,  then  am  I  strong."  For  it  is  an 
unreasonable  delusion  to  think  that  our  strength  is  independ- 
ent and  our  own.  Whence  does  it  come  if  not  from  God  ? 
Those  who  refuse  to  believe  that  God  must  work  in  us  every 
good  thought  and  honest  resolution,  cannot,  of  course,  under- 
stand the  meaning  of  the  Apostle  when  he  says  :  "  When  I 
am  weak,  then  am  I  strong."  But  those  who  consider  that 
God  must  work  in  us  faith  and  the  divine  life  after  the  work- 
ing of  His  omnipotence,  and  remember  that  without  His  help 
we  cannot  do  anything,  but  with  it  everything,  are  already  in 
a  position,  from  one  side  at  least,  to  comprehend  the  sense  of 
the  great  truth  of  our  text. 

But  again,  man,  with  all  his  powers,  is  not  only  a  creature 
of  God,  but  also  a  free  and  rational  cr-eatiire,  according  to 
his  endowments.  He  is  able  to  become  conscious  of  his  Cre- 
ator, of  his  relations  to  his  fellow  men  and  to  the  laws,  which, 
in  this  respect,  and  for  the  ends  of  his  existence  in  general, 
are  founded  in  the  universe.  He  is  equally  capable  of  becom- 
ing conscious  of  his  ability  to  regulate  his  conduct  according 
to  these  laws  or  relations,  or  to  act  in  opposition  to  them  ;  of 
becoming  conscious  of  his  liberty,  or  the  power,  upon  due  re- 
flection and  deliberation,  to  choose  one  course  or  another, 
to  yield  himself  to  the  operations  of  the  Divine  Spirit,  or  to 
counteract  them,  to  follow  or  resist  them. 

Since  his  present  condition  is  one  of  corruption,  man  is 
wont,  in  the  misapplication  of  the  powers  accorded  to  him, 
frequently  to  prevent  the  influence  of  the  Divine  Spirit,  both 
through  restlessness  and  wilfulness.  Restlessness  or  disquiet, 
easily  produced  from  without  or  from  within,  renders  us 
unable  consciously  to  receive  light  and  power  from  above. 
When  under  the  influence  of  peculiar  circumstances  or  rela- 
tions, the  mind  is  perturbed  and  thrust  into  violent  com- 
motion, it  resembles  the  stormy  sea,  in  which  the  sky  and 
the  stars  cannot  be  reflected,  and  in  like  manner  we  are  un- 
able in  such  a  conflict  of  emotions  to  receive  the  image  of 


240  APPENDIX   A. 

God.  The  maddened  powers  within,  the  wild  freaks  of  the 
imagination,  contending  ebullitions  of  feeling  and  tumultuous 
passions  raging  within  him  do  not  obey  him,  but  carry  him 
along  with  them. 

Though  endowed  with  liberty  or  free  will,  yet  having,  in  a 
state  of  disquiet,  formed  some  purpose,  we  are  prone  to  fall 
into  wilfulness,  and  wilfully  to  oppose  the  will  of  God  with  all 
our  strength;  through  outward  entanglements  or  inward 
confusion,  when  bound  in  the  fetters  of  pernicious  prejudice, 
and  under  the  influence  of  false  views,  we  pursue  crooked 
ways  and  do  many  things  that  are  unprofitable.  Wilfulness 
and  self-reliance  disturb  the  operations  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  not 
only  in  respect  of  the  immoderate  pursuit  of  secular  and  sin- 
ful aims  and  enjoyments,  but  also  in  respect  of  the  general 
purpose  of  amendment  ;  and  this  explains  the  phenomenon 
that  even  those  who  desire  the  better  part  are  frequently 
checked  in  their  progress  through  self-will,  and  through  the 
self-complacent  direction  of  the  powers  accorded  to  them,  to 
remain  estranged  from  God,  to  grow  perturbed  and  confused 
in  their  ideas,  and  under  the  delusion  of  doing  good  in  ac- 
complishing one  thing  or  another,  removing  one  or  restoring 
another,  virtually  work  against  the  purpose  of  God,  and  in- 
stead of  drawing  nearer  to  the  divine  life,  drift  more  hope- 
lessly away  from  it. 

Whoever  contemplates  himself  in  this  mirror  will  perceive 
how  when  he  is  strong,  or  exerts  his  powers  in  a  wrong  way, 
and  strives  to  work  according  to  the  dictates  of  his  own  will, 
he  may  do  unspeakable  mischief  ;  for  the  main  thing  is  not  to 
work  with  power  and  to  exert  the  power  of  which  we  are 
conscious,  nor  is  it  the  measure  of  our  strength  of  will,  but  it 
is  its  judicious  direction,  conformably  to  the  divine  will,  to  ac- 
complish His  gracious  purpose.  It  is  only  when  we  surrender 
our  self-will  and  self-work,  and,  looking  up  to  God,  calmly 
allow  Him  to  influence  us,  convinced  that  of  ourselves  we 
have  not  and  cannot  do  anything,  and  must  receive  every- 
thing from  His  free  grace,  that  we  behold  the  glory  of  the 
Lord  with  unveiled  face,  and  are  glorified  into  the  same  light. 


SERMONS.  241 

On  this,  account,  dear  brethren,  it  behooves  us  to  grow  weak 
in  ourselves  that  the  power  of  God  may  the  more  mightily 
work  in  us,  for  "when  I  am  weak,  then  am  I  strong." 

2. 

If,  then,  we  deem  it  desirable  to  maintain  that  frame  of  mind 
and  disposition  of  heart  which  render  us  capable  of  receiving 
the  divine  and  sanctifying  influence,  the  question  comes  up 
how  and  by  what  means  we  may  reach  the  position  of  be- 
coming weak  in  order  that  the  power  of  God  may  work  in  us 
mightily  ?  And  we  answer  that  it  comes  to  pass  in  this  way  : 
becoming  more  and  more  conscious  of  our  own  nothingness, 
seeking  to  grow  more  familiar  with  our  sinful  corruption,  and 
endeavoring  to  check  all  distraction,  we  open  our  hearts  to 
the  love  of  God  in  order  to  be  influenced,  penetrated  and 
melted  by  it. 

For  this  purpose  let  us  search  and  investigate  our  hidden 
blemishes,  uncover  the  depths  of  sin,  the  secret  lurking-places 
of  our  hearts  alienated  from  God  and  so  utterly  perverted, 
that  we  may  know  the  depth  of  our  fall  and  the  inveterate- 
ness  of  our  pollution.  When  our  dear  Lord  trod  this  earth 
of  ours  he  sought  sinners,  for  it  is  not  the  whole,  but  the  sick 
that  need  a  physician.  But  we  must  be  animated  through 
and  through  by  the.  sense  of  our  sinfulness  before  we  can 
hear  the  voice  of  the  Good  Shepherd  ;  that  gladly  and  with- 
out a  will  of  our  own,  convinced  of  our  inability,  we  suffer 
Him  to  take  us  in  His  arms  and  carry  us  on  His  shoulders. 
And  towards  this  knowledge  of  ourselves,  this  familiarity 
with  our  true  state,  everything  may  minister  in  turn,  our 
temptations,  our  stumblings  and  lapses,  and  all  our  trials. 

Our  temptations,  especially  by  tracing  them  to  their  deep 
sources,  remembering  that  the  proper  information  concern- 
ing our  true  nature  flows  not  so  much  from  our  outward 
actions,  as  from  the  secret  and  hidden  springs  of  motive  of 
which  they  are  only  the  expressions.  These  temptations  in 
their  curious,  foolish,  envenomed  and  variegated  character 
disclose  to  us  more  and  more  the  intensity  of  our  natural 


242 


APPENDIX  A. 


depravity  and  corruption,  our  inability  to  work  good  in  virtue 
of  our  own  strength,  and  of  our  entire  dependence  on  the 
help  and  support  of  our  heavenly  Father.  It  is  then,  that 
with  greater  willingness,  more  intense  longing,  more  profound 
gratitude,  Vve  yield  ourselves  to  the  Father,  whose  gracious 
purpose  it  is  to  cleanse  us  in  His  Son  from  all  unrighteous- 
ness ;  it  is  then  that  we  cleave  to  the  Son  with  greater  fidelity, 
as  unto  one  that  is  able  to  save  to  the  uttermost,  any  and  all 
desiring  to  come  to  God  through  Him,  it  is  then  that  we  receive 
with  greater  joyfulness  the  spirit  of  grace  and  of  prayer, 
gladdened  by  the  bright  beams  of  divine  love,  and  convinced 
of  the  desperate  and  inveterate  wickedness  of  our  heart,  attain 
to  the  beatific  assurance  that  our  safety  and  salvation  depend 
not  on  our  willing  or  running,  but  on  the  mercy  of  God. 

Our  stumblings  and  lapses  also  may  serve  to  promote  our 
self-knowledge  ;  they  will  uncover  the  weakest  points,  the 
most  vulnerable  spots  of  our  hearts,  and  disclose  the  dangers 
to  which  we  are  exposed.  Our  stumbling  will  perforce  im- 
press us  with  a  sense  of  weakness  in  perceiving  that  though 
aroused  and  awakened  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  though,  as  it 
w^re,  miraculously  changed  in  the  bent  and  disposition  of 
our  will,  which  instead  of  seeking  its  own,  turns  God-ward, 
longs  for  the  attainment  of  the  highest  felicity,  desires  to  run 
with  alacrity  and  joy  in  the  way  of  the  divine  commandments, 
and  the  paths  of  peace — in  perceiving  that  in  spite  of  all  this 
there  comes  over  us  a  certain  lassitude  and  apathy  which  in- 
terferes with  the  proper  and  energetic  use  of  our  powers,  and 
causes  us  to  yield  to  momentary  ebullitions  of  feeling,  or  to 
the  seductive  influence  of  plausible  counter-representation. 
And  lastly,  dear  brethren,  the  trials,  afflictions  and  calami- 
ties to  which  we  are  subjected  may  serve  to  promote  our 
humility.  This  we  may  perceive  from  the  degree  to  which 
they  are  able  to  touch  us,  the  depth  to  which  they  reach,  and 
the  extent  of  the  decisive,  and  frequently  perverted  influence 
they  exert  both  on  the  frame  of  our  mind  and  our  outward 
behavior.  In  this  way  we  become  gradually  convinced  of 
our  weakness,  and  learn  more  and  more  of  the  poor  avail  of 


SERMONS.  243 

our  own  power  in  bearing  our  burden  and  casting  away  the 
sin  which  doth  so  easily  beset  us. 

Let  not  pride  prevent  us  from  thus  looking  at  ourselves,  for 
we  are  prone  to  look  at  ourselves  in  the  best  light,  and  this 
inclination,  this  indulging  of  our  self-love  does  not  wholly 
leave  us,  even  after  the  principal  and  capital  change  of  our 
heart  has  already  set  in.  Men  fondly  cherish  the  feeling  of 
seeing  themselves  arrayed  in  loveliness,  and  of  taking  delight 
in  the  contemplation  of  their  virtues  ;  they  are  prone  to  eye  a 
certain  degree  of  excellence  ihey  intetid  to  acquire,  rather 
than  divine  grace  compassionating  them  in  their  natural 
misery,  and  the  blessing  of  which  they  would  enjoy,  though 
its  fruit  in  quality  or  quantity  may  not  come  up  to  their  ex- 
pectations. For  we  do  not  desire  to  be  that  which  under  the 
circumstances  we  may  be  after  the  will  of  God,  but  we  covet 
accomplishments  to  gratify  our  vanity  and  self-complacency. 
Hence  we  find  many  that  complain  of  themselves  and  their 
condition;  they  complain,  not  because  they  abhor  sin,  but 
because  they  grieve,  and  are  disappointed  in  appearing  so 
meanly  in  their  own  eyes.  It  is  pride  which  causes  them 
to  despair  of  themselves,  if  they  are  unable  to  present  them- 
selves in  their  coveted  excellence.  But  this  grieving  is  very 
different  from  the  godly  sorrow  which  worketh  repentance 
to  salvation  not  to  be  repented  of;  for  this  latter  calmly, 
meekly,  patiently  and  resignedly  endures  the  sight  of  sinful- 
ness, convinced  that  where  the  work  of  God  has  begun  to 
operate,  it  will  gradually  gain  the  ascendency,  occupy  more 
room,  forbidding  sin  to  reign  in  us,  and  plainly  showing  us 
whence  we  are  fallen,  and  how  much  we  are  stained  and 
polluted  by  sin.  But  the  former  is  impatient  because  the 
plant  of  righteousness  is  not  immediately  blooming  in  the 
perfection  of  its  beauty,  and  exhibiting  the  riches  of  its  fruit- 
age. Let  us  beware  of  that  frame  of  mind;  let  us  keep  the 
seed  of  the  divine  in  a  good  and  honest  heart,  and  bring  forth 
fruit  with  patience.  Our  Lord,  when  He  trod  this  earth  ot 
ours,  came  to  seek  sintiers,  and  He  will  seek  us  also,  if  we 
feel  that  we  labor  and  are  heavy  laden.     Therefore  let  us  re- 


244  APPENDIX  A. 

member  what  weak  vessels  we  are,  how  ready  to  break,  and 
how  much  we  resemble  a  bruised  reed,  and  smoking  flax  (/.  <?., 
a  glowing  wick  ready  to  go  out)  !  Then  we  shall  humble 
ourselves,  and  our  soul  will  recover  health  when  with  opened 
eyes  we  behold  the  filth  that  pollutes  us,  do  not  deceive  our 
selves  as  to  our  hurt,  and  become  familiar  with  our  depravity 
and  our  natural  nothingness. 

Moreover,  it  behooves  us  to  sJnni  distraction  as  much  as 
possible,  for  that  is  the  root  of  the  evil.  If  we  fail  to  seek  re- 
tirement, to  commune  with  our  own  heart  and  to  collect  our 
hidden  powers,  we  are  not  able  to  use  them  at  all.  Allow  your 
thoughts  to  range  abroad  where  they  may  list,  fly  from  one 
thing  to  another,  and  you  are  like  a  reed  shaken  with  wind. 
But  as  we  are  destined  to  be  plants  to  the  praise  of  the  Lord, 
firmly  rooted  trees  of  righteousness,  we  must,  in  order  to  re- 
cover our  health,  check  distraction  and  diversion,  shun  it  as 
much  as  we  may,  and  erect  a  dam  against  it  within.  This  is 
indispensable  to  the  obtaining  of  that  sense  of  weakness  in 
which  we  grow  strong,  observe,  mark,  receive  and  apply  to 
our  salvation  the  drawings  of  divine  grace.  Preaching  is 
plainly  inadequate  to  meet  the  requirements  of  the  case,  if 
distraction  is  not  checked;  for  were  it  adequate,  the  many 
thousand  sermons  preached  to  so  great  a  multitude  of  hearers 
ought  to  produce  a  far  greater  and  more  efficacious  influence 
of  the  Spirit  of  God  on  their  hearts  and  lives.  It  is  while  men 
are  distracted  that  the  enemy  cometh  and  taketh  away  the 
word  out  of  their  hearts,  lest  they  should  believe  and  be 
saved — and  in  time  of  temptation,  through  the  distractions  of 
cares  and  riches  and  pleasures  of  this  life,  they  fall  away  and 
bring  no  fruit  to  perfection. 

Therefore,  keep  thy  foot  when  thou  goest  to  the  house  of 
God,  and  be  more  ready  to  hear  than  to  give  the  sacrifice  of 
fools,  and  keep  thy  heart  wnth  all  diligence,  for  out  of  it  are 
the  issues  of  life.  Neither  the  word  of  the  divine  revelation, 
nor  the  experience  of  life  will  be  profitable  and  conduce  to 
to  our  melioration  if  we  are  distracted  in  mind.  If  then  we 
are  seriously  desirous  to  know  how  matters  stand  within  us, 


SERMONS.  245 

how  poor  we  are  and  how  dependent  on  God,  to  cultivate  a 
sense  of  reasonable  dissatisfaction  with  ourselves  and  main- 
tain a  consciousness  of  weakness,  we  should  be  peculiarly  on 
our  guard  to  drive  away  everything-  from  without  that  may 
hurt  us  and  disturb  our  quietness,  I  say  everything  that 
may  be  misused  or  perverted  in  that  direction,  not  excepting 
even  strong  pious  emotions,  for  they  also  may  lead  astray. 
For  just  try  and  examine  yourselves,  dear  brethren,  after  you 
have  wept  in  seeming  grief,  if  you  know  why  and  for  what 
purpose  your  tears  did  flow?  Under  the  influence  of  such 
vehement  and  tumultuous  emotion,  all  orderly  thought  is  apt 
to  vanish,  and  from  the  first  good  thought  that  touched  you 
and  caused  you  to  be  so  profoundly  moved,  you  yielded  to 
the  influence  of  the  excitement  which  made  you  deaf  to  all 
further  attention,  and  if  you  did  not  hear  any  more,  you  did 
not  think  any  more,  and  if  you  did  not  think  any  more,  you 
did  not  understand  and  comprehend,  and  if  you  did  not  com- 
prehend you  cannot  possess  anything  or  derive  any  blessing 
from  it.  Oh,  that  Christians  would  consider  that  the  life  of 
the  Spirit  must  be  received  in  full  consciousness,  and  that 
every  distraction  must  be  checked  and  avoided,  of  whatever 
kind  it  be.  Where  that  is  done,  the  sense  of  weakness  is  sure 
to  manifest  itself,  we  look  deliberately  and  consciously  around 
and  weigh  the  proportion  of  our  strength  to  meet  the  im- 
portant requirements  which  here  or  there  are  expected  of  us. 
Therefore,  dear  friends,  seeing  that  we  are  naturally  inclined 
to  be  distracted  and  possessed  by  currents  of  thought  and 
feeling,  by  fanciful  illusions  and  delusions,  driven  from  one 
fantastic  vision  to  another,  and  cast  from  one  frame  of  mind 
into  another  without  knowing  why  or  how  it  all  comes  to 
pass,  let  us  take  care  and  beware  lest  by  such  violent  alter- 
nations of  tumultuous  excitement  we  cease  to  be  human  be- 
ings. For  in  such  a  state  of  chaotic  distraction,  which  carries 
us  headlong  hither  and  thither,  our  mind  may  be  here  or 
there,  but  we  are  not  conscious  of  it;  not  personally  conscious, 
and  it  is  only  personal  consciousness  that  makes  us  truly 
men.     The  tension,  moreover,  of  this  spiritual  excitement  is 


246  APPENDIX  A. 

inevitably  followed  by  a  reaction  and  relaxation,  and  the  more 
we  imagine  that  in  virtue  of  such  mental  excitement,  of  such 
an  upheaval  and  depression  of  mind,  to  have  attained  some 
extraordinary  degree  of  excellence,  the  more  egregiously  do 
we  deceive  ourselves,  and  stray  away  from  the  end  of  our 
heavenly  calling.  Let  us  then  earnestly  and  honestly  strive 
to  avoid  every  kind  of  distraction,  outward  distraction  by  the 
careful  regulation  of  our  outward  rule  of  life,  and  inward 
distraction,  by  the  vigilant  observation  of  what  transpires 
within  ;  by  regulating  our  feelings,  by  endeavoring  to  con- 
centrate our  thoughts  on  Christ,  and  we  shall  feel  our  Vv-eak- 
ness,  and  be  able  to  grow  strong  in  the  same. 

Finally,  dear  brethren,  let  us  yield  ourselves  to  the  love  of 
God,  our  Heavenly  Father,  as  it  is  shed  over  us  all  through 
Christ  Jesus  our  Lord,  that,  thoroughly  humbled,  we  may  ap- 
pear unto  ourselves  small  and  weak  that  the  power  of  God  may 
all  the  more  mightily  dwell  in  us.  For  there  are  in  our  nature 
depths  that  can  hardly  be  fathomed,  and  hardnesses  that  can 
only  be  melted  by  that  sacred  fire.  It  is  on  this  account  that 
we  must  yield  ourselves  to  the  influence  of  the  love  of  God  in 
Christ,  would  we  grow  weak,  for  as  it  is  the  nature  of  love  to 
yield  itself  to  its  object,  to  surrender  self  and  to  belong  wholly 
to  the  beloved,  so  ought  our  heart  to  aspire  after  most  inti- 
mate union  with  God,  to  surrender  and  present  itself  as  an 
offering  to  our  dear  Father,  to  suspend  all  self-seeking  and 
self-working  until  His  Power  operates  in  us,  then  both  what 
we  will  and  do  is  sure  to  succeed,  to  our  joy  and  felicity  in 
the  omnipotent  power  of  love,  according  to  the  good  pleasure 
of  His  will.  And  this  love  we  shall  know  by  attending  to  the 
proofs  of  the  same  which  everywhere  surround  us,  and  by 
considering  that  we  are  not  worthy  of  the  least  of  all  the 
mercies,  and  of  all  the  truth  which  He  is  showing  unto  us. 
Once  in  the  way  of  this  direction,  the  perceptive  power  of  our 
eyes  will  grow  more  intense,  and  enable  us  to  discover  the 
traces  of  His  kindness  and  the  blessings  of  His  love,  and  to 
become  more  receptive  of  its  vitalizing  beams.  And  as  we 
contemplate  the  great  work  of  Redemption,  and  seek  to  pene- 


SERMONS.  247 

trate  the  Love  which  bore  our  sins  on  the  tree,  and  remitted 
them  to  us,  and  has  called  us  to  its  peace  and  blessedness,  the 
heart  that  is  hard  begins  to  melt,  that  which  was  dead  is 
quickened,  and  the  motions  of  tender  and  sweetest  yearning 
draw  from  the  depths  of  our  soul  this  prayer  of  a  godly  poet : 

Zeuch  midi  ganz  in  Dich, 
Dass  vor  Liebe  ich 
Ganz  zerinne  und  zerschmelze, 
Und  auf  Dich  mein  Elend  walze, 
Das  stets  driicket  mich  ! 
Zeuch  mich  ganz  in  Dich. 

Let  this  be  also  our  prayer  and  the  daily  sighing  of  our 
heart :  "  Grant  that  Thy  Love  alone  dwell  in  my  soul."  And 
in  order  to  nourish  and  feed  this  sacred  fiame,  let  us  read  and 
meditate  on  the  words  of  divine  revelation,  or  the  glorious 
hymns  of  our  Hymn  Book,  in  which  the  love  of  Jesus  is  so 
touchingly  portrayed,  to  edify  our  hearts,  and  to  lay  us  under 
increasing  obligations  of  fidelity.  If  this  love  begins  to  glow 
within  us,  the  heat  thereof  is  sure  to  melt  the  hardest  hard- 
ness and  subdue  the  proudest  mind,  and  we  shall  recover  our 
health  and  grow  strong  in  the  inner  man. 

Gracious  Father,  who  desirest  us  to  become  sharers  of 
thy  salvation  and  felicity,  thou  knowest  how  many  of  thy 
children,  through  self-will  and  self-work,  miss  the  mark 
which  thou  hast  set  them.  May  thy  Good  Spirit  preserve  us 
from  such  a  lot,  and  may  thy  grace  make  us  weak  in  order 
that  we  may  grow  strong.  May  it  please  thee  to  uncover  our 
secret  faults,  to  bless  us  with  quietness,  to  collect  our  wander- 
ing and  scattered  thoughts,  that  we  may  know  thee  and  see 
thee  in  the  love  with  which  thou  hast  regard  unto  thy  ser- 
vants, carriest  the  sick  and  the  weak  in  thine  arms,  and  givest 
power  to  the  weary  and  strength  sufficient  unto  the  weak. 
O  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  grant  that  with  all  our  sorrow  and 
misery  we  may  fall  into  thine  embrace,  and  in  thy  bosom  find 
rest  unto  our  souls. 

There  is  no  other  rest  anywhere  but  in  thee,  we  therefore 


248  APPENDIX   A. 

pray  thee  let  the  fire  of  thy  love  melt  us  into  a  living  sacrifice, 
holy  and  acceptable  unto  God! 

Also  v/ird  es  noch  geschehen, 
Dass  der  Herr  uns  wird  ansehen, 
Und  wir  werden  noch  auf  Erden, 
Gottes  Liebesopfer  v^erden. 


III. 

FIDELITY   IX  THE  LEAST. 
St.  Luke,  xvi.  10-13. 


Preached  ill  1832. 


"Although  the  Christian  religion  is  founded  on  knowledge 
and  the  conviction  that  'God  is  Love,'  not  a  few  of  our  the- 
ologians and  writers  on  ethics  are  in  the  habit  of  represent- 
ing our  duty  to  God  and  to  our  neighbor  as  if  duty  and  love 
\vere  not  essentially  identical.  For  the  declaration  of  Holy 
Scripture,  that  all  the  commandments  are  comprehended  in 
that  of  the  love  of  God  and  of  our  neighbor,  imports  that  the 
practice  of  love  is  enjoined  as  a  duty.  But  this  love  could 
not  have  been  enjpined  as  a  commandment  or  a  duty,  if  it 
were  only  an  appetite  or  passion,  and  therefore  this  com- 
mandment of  love  simply  implies  that  every  man  is  endowed 
with  the  faculty  of  admitting  or  repelling  the  affection  of  this 
love,  which  is  freely  offered  to  him,  and  freely  solicits  him. 
Moreover  the  identity  of  duty  and  love  is  indicated  by  the 
circumstance  that  both  denote  a  connection.  For  the  word 
duty  {Pfiicht=^debituni)  or  obligation  is  derived  from  being 
bound  or  connected  {verpflichtet,  verbundeii)  and  the  sole 
difference  between  them  is,  that  duty  (obligation,  i.  e.  the  law) 
as  a  pervading  power  only  incites  connection,  while  love,  as  a 


SERMONS.  249 

fulfilling  and  indwelling  power  attracts  ;  hence  love  delivers 
us  from  the  pressure  of  the  law,  just  as  the  entrance  of  air 
into  a  body  void  of  air  delivers  it  from  the  pressure  of  the 
air.  The  connection  which  in  duty  is  one-sided  and  enforced 
becomes  reciprocal  and  free  in  love."  Fr.  Baader. 


As  many  of  us,  gracious  Father,  as  are  here  assembled  in 
thy  presence,  while  we  continue  here,  are  stewards  of  the 
manifold  gifts  which  thou  hast  committed  to  our  keeping, 
and  it  is  expected  of  a  steward  that  he  should  be  found  faith- 
ful. Oh  that  we  might  be  faithful  in  that  which  is  entrusted 
to  us  !  Thou  art  faithful,  O  God  ;  thou  art  faithiul  and  true, 
and  without  iniquity;  just  and  right  art  thou  ;  and  it  is  wrong 
to  turn  away  from  thee  and  not  to  requite  thy  faithfulness 
with  faithfulness  in  return  ;  they  that  act  thus  crookedly  are 
blots,  and  not  thy  children.  But  our  trust  is  in  thee,  O  Lord, 
and  we  would  fain  be  faithful  to  thee  ;  for  such  as  be  faithful 
in  love  shall  abide  with  thee.     Amen. 

St.  Luke  xvi.  10-13. 

"lie  that  is  faithful  in  that  which  is  least,  is  faithful  also  in 
much  ;  and  he  that  is  unjust  in  the  least  is  unjust  also  in  much.  If 
therefore  ye  have  not  been  faithful  in  the  unrighteous  mammon, 
who  will  commit  unto  you  the  true  riches  ?  and  if  ye  have  not  been  faith- 
ful in  that  which  is  another  man's,  who  shall  give  you  that  which  is 
your  own  ?  No  servant  can  serve  two  masters  ;  for  either  he  will 
hate  the  one  and  love  the  other  ;  or  else  he  will  hold  to  the  one, 
and  despise  the  other.     Ye  cannot  serve  God  and  mammon." 

We  hav^e  here  a  condition  of  our  salvation  which  cannot 
be  gainsaid,  for  we  have  it  from  the  Lord's  self-own  lips. 
What  He  requires  is  faithfulness,  fidelity  in  the  least,  if  He  is 
to  set  us  over  much,  fidelity  now  that  we  may  be  able  to  be 
received  into  everlasting  habitations.  "Be  thou  faithful  unto 
death,  and  I  will  give  thee  the  crown  of  life,''  said  the  First 
and  the  Last  unto  His  Church.  This  word  concerning  fidelity 
is  addressed  in  the  first  instance  to  those  on  whom  He  lifts  up 


250  APPENDIX  A. 

the  light  of  His  countenance,  upon  whom  the  gracious  and 
merciful  Lord  casts  the  bright  beams  of  His  lovingkindness, 
in  whose  heart  He  has  already  kindled  a  spark  of  His  love, 
to  whom  He  has  given  a  pound  to  trade  withal  for  spiritual 
ends  ;  they  are  to  be  faithful  and  persevere  to  the  end  that 
they  may  be  saved.  But  it  bears  also  on  others,  it  applies  to 
every  one,  this  word  concerning  fidelity,  and  especially  con- 
cerning fidelity  in  that  which  is  least  ;  for  there  is  none 
among  us  destitute  of  the  ability  or  opportunity  to  do  good, 
and  none  may  say  :  I  have  had  little  intrusted  to  me,  and 
therefore  I  am  not  responsible;  for  though  much  is  expected 
of  him  to  whom  much  is  committed,  yet  the  servant  who  re- 
ceived less,  to  whom  only  one  talent  was  given,  had  to  render 
account  of  his  stewardship. 

We  have  to  deal  with  "  Fidelity  in  the  Least,''  and  propose 
to  inquire  : 

1.  What  are  we  to  understand  by  it  ? 

2.  Why  is  this  fidelity  so  necessary  ? 

3.  How  may  it  be  acquired  ? 

I. 

What  is  fidelity,  and  fidelity  in  the  least  ?  Fidelity  is  hold- 
ing fast  and  standing,  persevering  in  love.  When  out  of 
heaven,  down  from  the  Father  of  Light,  love  with  its  sacred 
beams  lights  hither  and  thitherto  kindle  a  spark  in  the  hearts 
of  men,  fidelity  denotes  the  stirring  and  keeping,  the  tending 
of  the  sacred  flame  of  grateful  return-love  in  our  breast,  the 
standing  in  the  love  wherewith  He  has  loved  us.  Withdraw- 
ing from  the  noise  and  the  distractions  which  assail  us  within 
and  without,  and  threaten  to  make  us  lose  out  of  sight  the 
glorious  prize  of  our  celestial  vocation,  to  the  stillness  of  re- 
tirement, we  collect  our  thoughts  that  we  may  receive  the 
blessings  of  the  love  of  God  and  muse  upon  what  is  right  and 
well-pleasing  before  God  and  our  Father — we  shall  collect 
ourselves,  if  we  are  faithful.  And  having  thus  collected  our- 
selves and  learnt  His  gracious  will  to  us-ward  that  believe, 


SERMONS.  251 

both  within  and  around  us,  fidelity  will  go  forth  to  meet  Him, 
requite  His  love  with  return-love,  and  strive  to  think  and  act 
carefully  and  conscientiously  according  to  our  knowledge  of 
the  truth.  In  word  and  deed,  in  thought  and  aim,  even  in 
the  most  secret  motions  of  his  heart,  a  faithful  man  will  ap- 
prove himself  pure  and  unblamable,  and  readily  and  cheer- 
fully aspire  to  self-denial  to  accomplish  the  gracious  purposes 
of  his  Heavenly  Father ;  yea,  in  the  conflict  with  obstacles 
and  difficulties,  if  they  arise,  the  faithful  man  will  strain  every 
nerve,  and  in  spite  of  suffering  and  adversity,  in  dishonor 
and  persecution,  persevere  unto  the  end  in  love. 

It  is  this  fidelity  which  Jesus  commends  to  us  in  the  text, 
even  in  the  least.  He  was  then  speaking  of  the  proper  use 
of  earthly  goods,  and  bade  the  rich  Pharisees  do  good  and 
gather  riches  for  the  future.  Earthly  goods  He  called  an- 
other s,  for  they  are  only  lent,  and  the  tmrighteous  inaimnon, 
because  of  their  unequal  distribution,  in  consequence  of  sin 
having  disturbed  the  relations  of  the  world.  Yea,  He  would 
say,  though  a  man's  possessions  have  not  been  acquired  by 
dishonest  means,  yet  he  is  bound  to  trade  therewith  as  a 
faithful  steward  ;  for  God,  in  allowing  the  present  state  of  the 
world  to  continue,  set  the  poor  by  the  side  of  the  rich,  that 
in  the  mutual  exchange  of  temporal  and  spiritual  gifts  they 
might  lovingly  aid  one  another,  and  that  the  rich  through 
the  communication  of  their  abundance  might  make  friends 
with  the  unrighteous  mammon,  and  through  the  blessings  of 
love  be  exalted  to  everlasting  habitations. 

Nor  does  this  hold  good  of  riches  only  ;  it  bears  alike  on 
every  temporal  good  and  relation,  all  of  which  should  be  duly 
estimated,  carefully  and  conscientiously  used  for  our  own 
benefit  and  that  of  others,  and  most  faithfully  husbanded  in 
the  least.  No  matter  how  little  and  insignificant  appear  our 
professional  duties,  domestic  affairs,  or  business  concerns,  let 
them  be  trifling  or  seem  even  contemptible,  and  our  office  so 
small  and  unimportant  that  it  may  seeni  almost  exaggeration 
to  describe  it  by  that  term,  yet  the  precept  of  fidelity  applies 
to  all.     It  imports  that  we  be  faithful  to  God  in  the  careful 


252  APPENDIX   A. 

and  conscientious  discharge  of  our  work,  for  His  sake,  and 
not  with  eye-service  as  men-pleasers,  in  things  great  and 
small,  even  the  very  least.  "Whatsoever  ye  do  in  word  or 
deed,"  exclaims  the  Apostle,  "  whether  ye  eat  or  drink,  or 
whatsoever  ye  do,  do  all  to  the  glory  of  God,"  "  do  all  in  the 
name  of  the  Lord  Jesus,"  *  in  the  spirit  and  mind  in  which 
He  would  have  done  it  in  your  place.  In  this  case  the  secon- 
dary ceases  to  be  secondary  and  rises  to  the  first  importance; 
the  least  is  not  so  little  but  that  it  must  be  watched,  observed, 
conscientiously  regarded,  and  faithfully  used  ;  here  your  ac- 
quaintance and  your  privacy,  your  recreation  and  your  work, 
your  speech  and  your  silence,  what  you  do  or  omit  to  do,  will 
have  to  pass  muster  and  be  judged  by  the  will  and  law  of 
your  God,  t  that  it  may  please  Him,  benefit  your  neighbor, 
and  promote  your  happiness  ;  and  here  comes  in  that  saying, 
that  things  may  be  lawful  to  you  but  not  profitable,  and  you 
may  do  much,  but  it  will  be  unprofitable  unless  you  do  it 
heartily.     So,  this  is  fidelity  in  the  least. 

II. 

Why  is  this  fidelity  so  necessary  ? 

The  time  of  our  earthly  pilgrimage,  and  everything  that 
belongs  to  it,  is  a  time  oi probation,  this  is  the  primary  reason 
of  the  great  necessity  of  faithfulness.  It  is  all  of  God's  own 
guiding,  conforms  to  His  gracious  plan  of  educating  us,  and 
designed,  according  to  His  paternal  counsel,  to  be  a  school 
and  discipline  for  our  improvement  and  ultimate  success. 
From  the  first  moment  of  our  consciousness  until  we  lay  the 
pilgrim-staff  aside,  wherever  we  be,  and  whatever  we  meet. 
He  has  foreseen  it  all,  provided  and  ordered  it  to  our  sancti- 
fication  through  the  exhibition  of  faithfulness.  The  final  de- 
cision will  not  depend  upon  ivhat  we  have  done,  but  upon 
how  we  have  done  it ;  "  Whosoever  shall  give  to  drink  unto 
one  of  the  least  a  cup  of  cold  water  only  in  the  name  of  a 

*  Col.  iii.  17-23  ;   i  Cor.  x.  31. 
f  Cf.  Reinhardt,   Ueber  den  Werth  der  Kleinigkeiten,  etc. 


SERMONS.  253 

disciple,  verily  he  shall  in  no  wise  lose  his  reward."*  And 
even  as  in  the  education  of  our  children  little  and  insignifi- 
cant circumstances  and  occurrences  afford  us  a  sure  measure 
of  their  heart  and  mind,  so  in  like  manner  the  judge  of  the 
quick  and  dead  will  observe  a  similar  rule  and  standard  of 
judgment :  "  He  that  is  faithful  in  that  which  is  least,  is  faith- 
ful also  in  much  ;  and  he  that  is  unjust  in  the  least,  is  unjust 
also  in  much." 

It  is,  moreover,  characteristic  of  love  to  be  charmed  and 
delighted  by  taking  note  of  little  and  seemingly  trifling  things, 
and  to  proclaim  itself  not  only  by  great  sacrifices,  but  also 
by  tender  carefulness  in  the  least.  It  will  manifest  itself  by 
fidelity,  if,  for  instance,  in  the  narrow  circle  of  our  home  we 
try  to  make  trifling  circumstances  profitable  to  our  fellow- 
men,  to  develop  the  least  into  the  great,  and  as  to  ourselves, 
give  heed  to  place  every  step  we  take,  and  every  word  we 
utter,  under  the  guardian  care  and  inspection  of  the  good 
Spirit  who  moves  the  hearts  of  the  children  of  God.  Who- 
ever you  are,  young  or  old,  husband  or  wife,  and  whatever 
your  station,  high  or  low,  whether  little  is  committed  to  you 
or  much,  if  you  are  faithful,  you  will  have  praise  of  God  in 
that  day  which  will  bring  to  light  the  hidden  things  of  dark- 
ness, and  will  make  manifest  the  counsels  of  the  heart. 

Again,  the  least,  the  most  trifling  and  insignificant,  is  part 
of  the  great  and  whole.  Every  day  is  linked  in  the  chain  of 
your  life,  and  not  an  hour  of  it  may  be  wasted  without  some 
loss  to  you  of  what  was  intended  for  your  good.  Every 
providence,  likewise,  that  befalls  you,  is  a  drawing  nigh  of 
the  Father's  heart  to  your  own,  a  look  of  His  eye  into  yours, 
beckoning  you,  a  pressure  of  your  hand  by  His,  bidding  you 
draw  nearer  to  Him,  enter  into  friendship  with  Him  and 
make  your  calling  and  election  sure.  Where  is  the  situation 
and  where  the  relation  that  is  not  connected  with  the  supreme 
end  of  our  existence,  and  that  cannot  be  utilized  for  it  ?  Can 
you  name  anything  in  the  experience  and  the  incidents  of 

*  Matth.  X.  42. 


254  APPENDIX  A. 

your  daily  life  unsuitecl  to  God's  plan  of  educating  us,  or  no 
calculated  to  promote  His  purpose  with  us  ?  Reflect  on  all 
the  events  marking  the  whole  course  of  your  life  from  tender 
infancy  through  all  the  years  of  your  development,  from  the 
cradle  in  which  you  were  rocked  to  the  altar  before  which 
you  ratified  your  vows,  from  the  happy  unconcern  of  child- 
hood, free  from  sorrow  and  from  care,  to  the  anxieties  ot 
your  riper  years  ;  reflect  on  them  and  you  will  be  constrained 
to  own  that  they  are  wonderfully  and  intimately  interlinked 
and  interwoven ;  a  single  circumstance,  even  the  least,  had  it 
taken  another  turn,  might  have  entirely  changed  your  course 
of  life  !  But  His  eyes  were  open  over  all  your  ways,  and  He 
saw  you,  yet  being  imperfect,  and  in  His  book  all  your  days 
were  written  which  were  to  come  with  all  their  events  ;  *  but 
He  nevertheless  has  placed  your  destiny  into  your  own  hands. 
It  is  then  abundantly  clear  that  there  is  absolutely  nothing 
which  you  might  deem  to  be  immaterial,  or  not  fraught  with 
important  results  ;  everything  affects  you  inevitably  for  good 
or  for  evil — and  this  proves  the  necessity  of  faithfulness  in 
the  great  and  in  the  least — and  in  the  least  that  we  may 
gain  the  great. 

And  it  is  necessary,  in  the  last  place,  because  it  is  an  exer- 
cise preparatory  for  eternity.  If  ye  have  not  been  faithful  in 
that  which  is  another  man's  (German  :  a  stranger's  posses- 
sion), ye  that  are  strangers  on  earth,  who  will  give  you  that 
which  is  your  own  ? 

The  elementary  parts  ot  school  instruction,  the  beginnings 
of  art  or  of  a  trade,  are  apt  to  be  little  thought  of  in  later 
)-ears  ;  but  he  that  has  not  mastered  them  is  hindered  in  the 
progress,  and  having  failed  to  lay  a  good  foundation,  he  will 
remain  forever  a  bungler  in  his  calling.  The  exercise  ot 
power  and  its  development  are  starting  points  and  props  of 
fitness  and  usefulness  all  through  life.  The  same  holds  good 
with  respect  to  the  affairs  of  our  immortal  spirit.  The  earthly 
house  of  this  tabernacle  will  crumble  into  dust,  our  temporal 

*  Ps.  cxxxix.,  i6  based  on  Luther's  version. 


SERMONS.  255 

relations  will  be  dissolved,  and  they  will  ask  for  us  in  vain 
hereafter  where  once  we  stood  ;  but  the  power  exercised  and 
developed  in  our  temporal  relations,  the  mind  set  and  fixed 
on  God,  seriousness,  strength  of  purpose,  honesty  under  all 
circumstances,  sincerity,  pureness,  heeding  the  voice  of  con- 
science, and  the  warnings  and  exhortations  of  the  Word  of 
God,  the  truth  and  righteousness  acquired  and  maintained  in 
the  good  fight,  divine  zeal  in  the  pursuit  of  good  developed  and 
exhibited  under  the  essentially  low  and  oppressive  work  of 
our  daily  life  and  the  sacred  flame  which  animates  and  im- 
pels us  to  action — all  these,  dear  brethren,  have  become  our 
own  ;  they  are  and  constitute  the  true  riches  which  abide,  and 
accompany  us  to  the  better,  the  perfect  world.  "  He  that 
hath  been  faithful  over  a  few  things  shall  be  made  ruler  over 
many  things,  and  enter  into  the  joy  of  his  lord."*  Oh  that  it 
might  be  your  studious  and  urgent  endeavor  to  be  most  careful 
and  conscientious  in  the  things  that  are  of  the  earth,  earthly, 
that  you  may  be  found  worthy  to  be  promoted  to  a  higher 
order  of  things,  and  entrusted  with  the  eternal,  because  you 
did  approve  yourself  on  earth  a  good  steward  of  the  manifold 
grace  of  God. 


III. 


How  may  it  be  acquired  ?  How  is  it  possible  to  be 
faithful  ? 

If  fidelity  is  holding  fast  and  abiding  in  love,  let  love  be 
practised.  Love  is  of  God,  and  God  is  Love  ;  love,  therefore, 
will  raise  you  above  appearance,  and  you  will  seek  and  find 
in  it  the  life  and  the  truth.  But  it  must  be  the  love  of  which 
the  Lord  says  :  "  Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all 
thy  heart,  and  with  all  thy  soul,  and  with  all  thy  mind,  and 
thy  neighbor  as  thyself.''  You  cannot  acquire  or  appropriate 
it  by  your  own  effort  ;  for  He  is  come  to  kindle  this  sacred 
fire  on  earth.     He  delights  to  excite  and  waken  love,  and  to 

*  Matth.  XXV. 


256  APPENDIX  A. 

kindle  even  in  you  the  divine  spark  of  love,  and  along-  with  it 
freely  to  give  you  all  things.  The  cross  is  set  up  aloft  that  from 
it  there  may  flow  a  never-failing  fountain  of  love  to  all  that 
believe  in  the  doctrine  and  word  of  reconciliation.  The 
sacred  river  of  that  love  sweeps  along,  you  also  have  been 
baptized  in  it,  and  often  made  to  feel  the  love,  wherewith 
God  has  loved  us. 

Cherish  this  love  and  practise  it ;  this  is  your  work  and 
3'ou  are  required  to  do  it.  The  flame  of  the  love  of  God  is 
destined  to  burn  pure  and  undivided  in  your  heart,  that  you 
maybe  found  faithful.  "No  man  can  serve  two  masters  ; 
for  either  he  will  hate  the  one  and  love  the  other  ;  or  else 
he  will  hold  to  the  one,  and  despise  the  other.  Ye  cannot 
serve  God  and  mammon ;"  you  cannot  at  the  same  time 
serve  the  world  and  God,  or  selfishness  and  love.  Take  heed 
then,  and  watch,  lest  the  sacred  flame  be  damped  and  choked 
through  distraction  or  the  filth  and  pollution  of  sin.  "  If  any 
man  love  the  world,  the  love  of  the  Father  is  not  in  him." 
Separate  and  decide*  within  yourself  that  you  may  know 
whether  you  are  serving  God  or  not  serving  Him  ;  do  not  in 
idle  pampering  of  the  flesh  confound  what  God  is  doing  with 
what  you  might  and  ought  to  do  ;  do  not  say :  "  The  Lord 
will  grant  me  fidelity,  for  I  have  asked  Him  in  prayer;"  for  lo  ! 
it  is  He  that  is  standing  at  the  door  of  your  heart,  entreating 
you  to  be  faithful,  because  unless  you  watch  and  strive.  He 
cannot  make  you  faithful  any  more  than  the  slothful  servant 
in  the  parable,  t  lest  like  him,  you  be  cast  into  outer  darkness, 
where  is  weeping  and  wailing  and  gnashing  of  teeth,  the 
place  reserved  for  recompense  wnto  hypocrites,  unto  such 
who  for  a  pretence  make  long  prayers,  to  move  Him  to  pity, 
as  if  He  were  a  hard  man  exacting  impossible  things — but 
who  nevertheless  refuse  to  be  faithful,  and  to  do  what  and  as 
He  bids  them — which  they  are  fully  able  and  ought  to  do. 

Yea,  practise  love  that  it  root  itself  in  faithfulness.     The 

'"'  German  :   Scheide  tmd  entscheide. 
\  Matlh.  XXV. 


SERMONS.  257 

outgoings  of  the  love  of  God  are  never  ceasing  to  give  you 
all  things  that  pertain  unto  life  and  godliness.  Oh!  that  you 
would  heed  it,  and  keep  it,  and  flee  from  the  transitory  lust 
of  the  world;  that  you  would  guard  your  immortal  soul,  and 
never  forget  what  He  has  done  for  you  ;  that  through  apathy 
and  idleness  you  would  never  obey  men  more  than  God,  and 
that  in  the  power  of  love  you  would  burst  and  fling  aside  the 
shameful  fetters  of  sin,  act  like  a  man,  and  courageously  do 
the  work  and  will  of  God. 

Loving  and  beloved  you  will  grow  nearer  and  dearer  to 
Him,  become  one  with  Him  in  spirit,  and  rejoice  in  the  expe- 
rience that  the  faithful  and  merciful  Lord  has  thoughts  of 
peace  to  you-ward  ;  it  will  be  your  joy  to  live  near  to  Him, 
and  raised  in  that  sweet  communion,  as  it  were,  to  heaven 
above,  you  will  from  that  higher  plane  of  observation  look  on 
the  earth  and  earthly  affairs  and  see  them  in  their  true  light  ; 
you  will  realize  that  the  earth  and  honor  with  men  cannot 
suffice  to  satisfy  the  wants  of  your  soul  ;  and  rising  superior 
to  the  world,  and  true  to  Him  that  calleth  you  and  is  faithful, 
you  also  will  be  faithful  in  all  your  ways.  "For  the  moun- 
tains shall  depart,  and  the  hills  be  removed  ;  but  my  kind- 
ness shall  not  depart  from  thee,  neither  shall  the  covenant  of 
my  peace  be  removed,  saith  the  Lord  that  hath  mercy  on 
thee."  *     Amen. 


Is.  liv.  10. 


APPENDIX    B. 


NOTICE   OF   SCHONHERR,    EXTRACTS    FROM    HIS 
WRITINGS  AND   THE  WORKS  OF  OTHERS. 


JOHANN    HEINRICH    SCHONHERR,    A   SUMMARY   OF   HIS   LIFE 
AND    VIEWS. 

He  was  born  November  30,  1770,  at  jMemel.  His  father 
was  a  non-commissioned  officer  in  an  infantry  regiment,  and 
universally  esteemed  ;  his  name  was  originally  Schonhagen, 
but  being  a  very  handsome  man,  the  Austrians,  among  whom 
he  spent  some  time  as  a  prisoner  of  war,  called  him  Schon- 
herr  (/.  <?.,  handsome  man,  or  gentleman)  ;  the  alteration 
pleased  him  so  much  that  he  retained  it,  and  it  became  the 
family  name.  His  wife,  Heinrich's  mother,  was  a  native  of 
Angerburg,  where  they  went  to  live  afterwards.  Heinrich, 
in  his  fifteenth  year,  was  apprenticed  with  a  merchant  at 
Konigsberg,  but  being  addicted  to  books,  left  his  employer, 
and  managed  to  acquire  the  necessary  modicum  of  attain- 
ments to  enter  the  university  ;  his  original  design  to  study 
theology  he  soon  abandoned,  and  chose  in  its  place  philosophy 
under  Kant.  After  six  months'  connection  with  the  univers- 
ity at  Konigsberg  he  left  it  in  the  autumn  of  1792  ;  but  during 
that  stay  he  had  already  (in  his  twenty-second  year)  com- 
menced independent  researches,  and  discovered,  on  his  ex- 
cursions in  the  neighborhood,  the  first  traces  of  the  truth 
which  he  taught  afterwards,  when  after  about  two  years' 

258 


NOTICE   OF  SCHONHERR.  259 

travels,  on  which  he  went  to  other  universities,  and  six  years' 
occupation  as  a  private  tutor,  he  returned  to  Konig^sberg".  His 
views  he  communicated,  on  a  journey  through  Germany  in 
1817,  to  a  number  of  professors  in  different  universities  ;  but 
they  did  not  commend  themselves  to  their  judgment.  In  1823, 
he  visited  his  brother  at  St.  Petersburg,  and  in  1824  he  was  at 
Berlin.  During  the  last  years  of  his  life  he  made  mechanical 
experiments,  which  were  entirely  unsuccessful.  In  con- 
sequence of  an  old  pulmonary  complaint  he  died  at  Spittel- 
hof,  belonging  to  Juditten,  near  Konigsberg,  in  the  church- 
yard of  which  place  he  was  buried.  He  died  October  15, 
1826. 

He  was  a  handsome  man,  of  tall  stature.  He  wore,  on 
grounds  of  health,  his  hair  long,  and  a  beard  descending  to 
his  chest ;  this  was  very  becoming  to  him  and  in  perfect  ac- 
cord with  the  dignity  of  his  carriage,  his  expressive  face,  and 
his  noble  stature. 

Though  he  never  held  an  office,  he  was  a  man  of  active 
habits,  and  search  for  the  truth  his  dominant  thought  by  day 
and  night  ;  under  its  influence  the  claims  of  nature  were 
neglected,  he  would  forget  his  meals,  and  many  a  night  he 
spent  waking.  The  whole  man,  in  appearance,  in  his  habits, 
and  chiefly  in  his  views,  was  diametrically  opposed  to  the 
prevailing  spirit  of  the  times.  He  was  like  an  ancient  seer, 
who  had  returned  to  a  world  that  knew  him  not,  neither 
could  understand  him.  Intellectually  he  was  a  giant,  and 
his  power  of  will  was  prodigious;  convinced  that  his  phil- 
osophical and  religious  views  were  true,  he  could  endure 
anything  rather  than  opposition  or  contradiction.  There  lay 
his  w^eakness.  In  disputations  his  dialectical  skill  was  un- 
disputed, and  he  usually  came  off  victor.  Naturally  fiery, 
earnest  and  impassioned,  and  gifted  with  great  eloquence, 
the  impress  of  sincerity  and  conviction  stamped  upon  his 
every  word,  few  could  resist  the  influence  of  his  great  power. 
Solemn,  devout,  impassioned  flowed  the  stream  of  his  elo- 
quence, stirring  the  hearts,  moving  the  passions  and  convinc- 
ing the  understandinsr  of  his  hearers. 


26o  APPENDIX   B. 

Starting  in  doubts  as  to  the  destiny  of  man,  and  the  im- 
mortaUty  of  the  soul,  and  seeking  by  his  own  researches  to 
solve  those  questions,  and  to  harmonize  revelation  with  nature 
and  reason,  he  published  the  results  of  his  inquiries  in  two 
pamphlets  {Sieg  der  goitlichen  O^enbarung,  Victory  of  the 
Divine  Revelation,  Konigsberg,  1804),  and  gathered  round 
himself  a  circle  of  friends  who  twice  a  week  had  meetings  to 
which  strangers  were  freely  admitted.  In  1809  these  meet- 
ings were  interfered  with  on  the  part  of  the  police,  but  allowed 
to  take  place  by  express  order  of  the  king. 

The  essential  difference  between  Schonherr's  philosophy 
and  that  of  other  systems  is  its  relative  dualism,  as  the  cause 
and  foundation  of  original  existence,  and  proceeds  on  the 
hypothesis  of  two  original  Beings,  endowed  with  the  properties 
of  simplicity  and  spirituality,  viz. :  Primal  Light  {Primal  Fire) 
and  Primal  Darkness  {Primal  Water),  the  former  being  pre- 
eminent as  to  dominion,  the  Lord  God  among  the  Primal 
Beings  (Elohim),  the  Creator,  Preserver  and  Governor  of  the 
world. 

Schonherr  was  not  a  modern  gnostic  ;  the  dualism  cognized 
by  him  in  nature  and  in  revelation  is  entirely  free  from  the 
errors  of  the  ancient  gnostics,  and  not  by  any  means  coinci- 
dent with  Schelling's  doctrine  of  the  potencies.  He  never 
framed  a  system,  separate,  concise  and  distinct.  And  there 
is  perhaps  no  teacher  in  modern  times  who  has  been  more 
flagrantly  caricatured  and  misrepresented  than  Schonherr  ; 
and  it  would  be  well  nigh  incredible  that  slander  could  in- 
vent what  it  did  invent  and  cause  to  be  believed,  if  it  were 
not  unfortunately  matter  of  history.  Of  the  nature  of  those 
slanderous  inventions  it  is  unnecessary  to  speak  here,  for 
that  were  to  give  further  currency  to  it  ;  and  if  anything  is 
clear  as  noon-day  it  is  the  undoubted  and  well-established 
purity  of  Schonherr  and  his  teaching. 

In  the  language  of  a  noble  Christian  lady  of  uncommon  in- 
tellectual strength,  and  as  to  every  Christian  virtue  a  very 
saint  upon  earth,  gifted  with  graces  and  endowments  rarely 
encountered  in  one  person,  Schonherr's  doctrine  is  distin- 


NOTICE  OF  SCHONHERR.  261 

guished  in  its  being  founded  upon  the  Scriptures  and  in  per- 
fect accord  with  their  teachings  from  all  other  human  systems, 
which,  in  presence  of  the  great  system  of  the  world  evolving 
or  involving  itself  into  being,  as  it  were  anticipate  its  original 
completion,  by  accomplishing  a  ready-made  world,  in  order 
to  have  done  with  their  own  narrow  ends,  leaving  it  to  others 
to  perform  a  similar  play  in  its  place.  Such  S3^stems,  desti- 
tute of  vital  connection  with  the  centre  of  life,  are  mostly 
short-lived,  rudely  shaken  or  hopelessly  rent  by  the  onsets  of 
younger  ones,  which,  though  not  strong  enough  to  give  them 
the  coup  de  grace,  place  them  among  the  ruins  where  the 
funeral  of  their  own  existence,  decaying  amid  truth  and  error, 
is  destined  to  be  performed.  .  .  .  Schonherr  was  unable 
to  frame  a  system  based  on  human  laws  ;  truth  cannot  be 
systematized  ;  it  is  the  tuning-fork  of  the  world  and  the  law 
of  its  motion,  it  regulates  life  and  causes  it  to  articulate  in 
proper  forms,  influences  the  individual  and  stamps  its  laws 
on  his  consciousness  and  nature.  Schonherr,  in  order  to 
show  that  he  was  not  a  systematizer  or  a  sort  of  second-hand 
creator  arrogating  to  himself  the  honor  due  to  God,  called  the 
results  of  his  researches  the  knowledge  (cognition)  of  the  truth, 
and  not  his  system."     {Die  Liebe  zur  IVahrheit,  p.  xvii.) 

The  extracts  which  follow  are  drawn  in  part  from  his  own 
writings,  and  from  those  of  others,  especially  from  those  of 
Ebel,  Diestel  and  Countess  Ida  von  der  Groben  ;  from  the 
nature  of  the  case  they  are  only  fragmentary,  but  they  will, 
it  is  believed,  serve  to  show  how  Schonherr  spoke,  and  how 
he  thought  and  reasoned.  As  to  the  quality  of  his  thoughts, 
however  much  the  reader  may  differ  with  him  in  other  re- 
spects, there  is  no  room  for  difference,  and  many  of  his  posi- 
tions and  conclusions  are  entitled  to  careful  examination,  and 
he  will  find  that  they  contain  much  that  is  highly  suggestive, 
if  not  positively  new  to  him.  Indeed,  the  circumstance  that 
the  writings  of  Schonherr  are  out  of  print,  and  those  of  the 
other  authors  only  rarely  met  with,  seemed  to  impose  the 
necessity  of  furnishing  extracts  rather  than  references,  which 
without  access  to  the  books,  would  be  of  no  use. 


262  APPENDIX  B. 


SOME  DETAILS  RELATING  TO  THE  TEACHING  OF  SCHONHERR. 

The  fundamental  principle  is  the  reception  of  the  Bible  as 
God-inspired,  without  any  weakening  or  neutralizing  modifi- 
cation whatsoever.  Its  inspiration  is  plenary  ;  it  is  through 
and  through  the  Word  of  God,  the  Revelation  of  Truth,  the 
declaration  of  His  Will.  The  philosophy  of  the  Bible  is  the 
only  true  philosophy.  The  Bible  is  the  source  of  all  true 
knowledge  concerning  God,  the  Creation,  Providence,  and 
Redemption.  In  this  respect  we  have  only  one  alternative  : 
either  deny  that  the  Bible  is  the  revelation  of  God  in  its  en- 
tireness,  and  turn  rationalist,  skeptic,  atheist,  pantheist  or  in- 
fidel ;  or  admit  that  it  is  through  and  through  the  Word  of 
God,  and  according  to  the  testimony  of  Christ  and  His  Apos- 
tles "given  by  inspiration  of  God,  profitable  for  doctrine,  for 
reproof,  for  correction,  for  discipUne  in  righteousness,  that 
the  man  of  God  may  be  perfect,  throughly  furnished  unto  all 
good  works."*  This  admission,  and  believing  reception  of 
the  Holy  Scriptures  involves  these  consequences  : 

1.  The  unconditional  acceptance  and  belief  of  the  strictly 
literal  and  grammatical  sense  of  its  declarations,  unless  their 
spiritual  or  figurative  import  is  evident,  as,  e.  g.,  in  the 
parables  ; 

2.  Their  interpretation  by  themselves,  and  the  general 
analogy  of  the  Scriptures  ; 

3.  The  exclusion  of  any  and  every  theory  which  imputes 
to  the  inspired  writers  a  system  of  accommodation,  or  arbi- 
trarily restricts  their  statements  to  temporary  or  local  circum- 
stances ; 

4.  Suspense  of  judgment  in  things  incomprehensible  (for 
all  men  are  not  equally  gifted,  and  things  still  hidden  may 
be  revealed) ;  the  utmost  care  not  to  reject  as  untrue,  or  un- 
worthy of  God,  scriptural  statements  in  seeming  conflict  with 
our  present  state  of  culture  ;  for  the  end  is,  by  searching  the 

*  2  Tim.  iii.  16,  17. 


NOTICE  OF  SCHONHERR.  263 

Scriptures  and  drawing  from  tlieir  pure  fountain,  to  attain  the 
knowledge  of  the  truth.* 

The  inquiries,  the  momentous  questions  Schonherr  sought 
to  answer  by  an  appeal  to  Holy  Scripture,  are  summarily  ex- 
pressed in  the  following  stanza  : 

Hier  bin  ich  !  rief  der  Mensch— und  ward  in  Gottes  Hand  ; 
Wie  bin  ich  ? — frug  er  schon,  als  kaum  er  fertig  stand  ; 
Wo  bin  ich  ? — staunt  er  an  die  Welt  urn  sich  im  Glanze. 
Wozu  bin  ich  ? — Wozu  ist  um  mich  dieses  Ganze  ? 

I  am — how  am  I  made  ?  Where  am  I  ?  What  am  I  made 
for  ?  What  is  the  world,  and  what  is  it  for  ?  These,  and 
questions  of  similar  import,  set  Schonherr  to  think,  and  to 
turn  to  the  Bible  for  light.  And  thinking,  and  reading,  and 
praying,  the  light  came  to  him.  Here  is  one  of  his  secret 
communings : 

"  Thou,  O  God,  revealest  to  us  that  only  he  does  not  know  the 
truth,  who  disobediently  separates  himself  from  thy  workings,  who 
in  will  and  deed  seeks  to  avoid  thy  lawful  order  which  makes  our 
knowledge  consistent  and  true  ;  that  man,  erring,  brought  sin  and 
its  sad  consequences  on  himself,  and  still  brings  them  on  himself 
as  long  as  he  perseveres  in  sin  ;  but  thou  art  merciful  and  gracious, 
long-suffering,  and  abundant  in  goodness  and  truth,  leaving  untried 
no  means  compatible  with  our  nature,  liberty  and  reason,  to  lead  us 
back  into  the  way  of  truth,  to  draw  us  out  of  misery,  corruption 
and  woe,  to  renew  us,  and  graft  us  anew  like  a  branch  into  the 
stem  of  thy  only-begotten  Son  (thy  Word,  by  Whom  thou  hast  also 
made  all  things),  that  of  His  Spirit  out  of  His  blood  we  may  acquire 
renewed  strength  for  victory  in  the  struggle  with  evil,  and  blessed 
with  the  forgiveness  of  our  sins,  restored  to  righteousness  and  holi- 
ness, stand  as  thy  children  before  thee,  to  enter  upon  our  incor- 
ruptible inheritance  in  a  new  life  and  a  new  world.  How  can  I  be 
careless  now  in  the  search  of  eternal  truth,  disbelieve  that  I  shall 
find  it,  and  without  hope  of  the  eternal  enjoyment  of  its  glorious 
fruits  ?     No,  with  unremitting  diligence  I  will  now  seek  the  truth, 


*Ebel,  Schliissel  zur  Erkenntniss  der  VVahrheit,  Leipzig,  1837,  p.  7. 


264  APPENDIX  B. 

inquire  and  search  for  it  in  the  right  way,  regard  it  with  admiration 
and  accept  it  with  ecstatic  joy.  .  .  .  Wrong  pride  shall  not 
mislead  me  any  more  in  the  vain  conceit  of  grasping  it  by  means  of 
my  own  reason,  or  of  developing  it  within  myself  by  my  own  powers  ; 
that  were  to  lose  it.  I  will  seek  it  reasonably,  and  not  unreasonably, 
and  avoid  regarding  thy  glorious  dower  as  a  sundered  fragment  of  thy 
infinite  wisdom,  or  as  a  gift  wrought  by  thy  omnipotence  but  separated 
from  it,  to  be  used  at  my  discretion  ;  I  will  rather  regard  it  as  the 
operation  of  Thy  Essence  near,  and  intimately  blended  with  my 
being,  identifying  it  in  thy  commandments  of  order,  righteousness 
and  holiness,  and  shunning  evil  as  contained  in  the  opposite  tempt- 
ations, which,  though  they  seek  to  excuse  concupiscence,  can  never 
rejoice  the  mind  or  be  approved  by  it,  but  must,  if  indulged,  event- 
uate in  error  and  misery.  Whenever  I  think,  or  will,  or  do  any- 
thing without  regard  to  the  difference  of  these  two  opposite  voices 
within  me,  or  without  the  distinct  perception  that  the  voice  of  the 
Alone  Good  within  me  thinks,  wills  or  prompts  me  to  action,  then 
I  think  of  reason  as  my  own  faculty,  and  not  as  the  faculty  of  God, 
and  therefore  abuse  it.  On  this  account,  then,  I  M'ill  avoid  em- 
ploying my  own  reason  as  conducing  to  evil,  but  employ  reason  as 
thy  gift,  in  full  consciousness,  all  the  oftener  and  more  diligently, 
because  it  is  Thy  Will  that  I  shall  think,  will  and  act  reasonably, 
and  thereby  grow  wise  and  happy."* 

Speaking  of  change,  and  arguing  on  the  universality  of  its 
existence,  and  the  laws  which  seem  to  regulate  it,  Schonherr 
asks  : 

"  Whither  would  the  most  careful  consideration  of  all  the  changes 
within  and  around  us  ultimately  lead  us  if  we  fail  to  know  the  true 
reason  of  their  existence  and  formative  aim  ?  Simply  look  back- 
wards and  forwards  on  our  condition  of  life,  and  we  are  constrained 
to  say  :  I  find  that  I  was  a  child  and  became  a  youth  ;  that  I  am 
growing  into  manhood — and  if  it  be  reserved  for  me  that  ven- 
erable gray  deck  my  brow,  I  shall,  arrayed  in  feebleness,  descend 
into  the  grave.  Into  the  grave  ?  a  thought  fit  to  crush  giant  pride! 
all  my  feelings  recoil  from  the  thought  !  Alas  !  should  May  only 
bloom,  and  its  breath  ravish,  its  shade  refresh,  and  the  nightingale 

*  *'  Grundziige  der  Erkenntniss  dcr  JVahrheit,'"  p.  14. 


NOTICE  OF   SCHONHERR.  265 

sing,  and  the  grape  grow  mellow,  to  whisper  in  the  flowers,  in 
their  balmy  fragrance,  in  the  animating  breeze,  in  the  warble  of  the 
songsters,  and  the  delicious  juice,  the  horrid  remembrance,  Mor- 
tal man,  to-day  you  feel  as  yet  a  spark  of  happiness,  but  remember 
that  irrevocable  fate  may  snatch  you  to-morrow  from  every  enjoy- 
ment for  evermore  !  And  you,  the  most  cherished  of  treasures— 
love,  friendship  and  virtue — three  sister  goddesses,  wont  to  scatter 
roses  on  the  earthly  path  of  the  best,  tell  me,  why  do  you  breathe 
into  mortal  breast  divine  feelings  which  in  point  of  duration  can  no 
more  measure  eternity  than  a  drop  of  water  the  unfathomable  sea  ? 
What  ?  did  some  potent  hand  raise  me  from  the  dust  into  life  only 
to  dash  me  with  the  same  potency  back  into  my  former  nothing- 
ness? Tyrants  that  cast  thousands  and  thousands  of  better  men 
into  roaring  flames  were  not  as  cruel,  as  unmerciful  as  He  would  be 
who  gave  me  life  only  as  the  perpetual  torture  of  an  uncertain  fu- 
ture !  But  I  look  at  the  misery  of  the  race  in  all  its  magnitude  ! 
Friends  and  relations,  brothers  and  sisters,  companions  of  my  life, — 
I  look  at  you,  and  all  that  came  before  you,  asking ;  What  murder- 
arm  robbed  you  of  all  the  highest  good  of  this  earth  ?  Who  was  it 
that  swept  the  devastating  sickle  of  terrific  death  unsparingly  over 
the  lives  of  you  all  ?  Why  have  you  ceased  to  walk  amongst  us  in 
the  noonday  of  your  strength  ?  Where  are  you,  brothers  and  sisters 
mine,  and  all  your  ancestral  fathers  and  mothers  up  to  the  first  scion 
of  the  race  ?  I  see  thee  no  more,  Abel  the  shepherd  king  and  first 
servant  of  the  Most  High  God,  by  the  flowery  banks  of  Euphrates  i 
Was  it  necessary  that  thy  own  and  first  brother  should  slay  thee 
and  give  thee  the  first  instruction  of  the  ravages  of  death  ?  O  hap- 
less race,  how  deep  was  thy  fall  from  the  very  cradle  of  thy  great- 
ness into  the  abyss  of  woe  !  and  thou  still  continuest  to  slake  thy 
thirst  with  the  blood  of  thy  brethren,  and  to  still  thy  hunger  ,with 
the  toil  of  the  poor  and  infirm  without  supplying  any  possible  rem- 
edies. .  .  .  And  is  this  to  be  your  ultimate  lot — the  course  of  your 
culture  and  the  goal  of  your  destiny — that  bom  as  a  child  you  die 
even  more  pitiable  than  a  child,  without  attaining  the  lofty  dignity 
of  manhood  ?— or  as  an  imaginary  man,  after  a  few  steps  on  the 
road  to  perfection,  wander  from  it  as  a  withered  apprentice  ?— or 
that  after  the  happy  dream  of  a  few  moments  of  life,  you  wake  no 
more  but  to  number  your  steps  to  your  grave  ?  and  what  then  ?  are 
not  your  wishes  carried  on  pinions  boasting  of  happiness  into  eter- 


266  APPENDIX   B. 

nity  ?  Does  your  consciousness  long  to  expect  the  dust  of  annihila- 
tion, or  your  germinating  reason  the  decay  of  corruption  ? 

"  But  who  furnishes  the  necessary  evidence  that,  though  the 
nobility  of  virtue  should  sanction  all  your  opinions  and  volitions  by 
an  unexceptionable  law,  and  represent  all  your  works  as  examples 
worthy  of  imitation,  that  you  are  warranted  to  expect,  beyond  the 
grave,  a  spark  of  recollection,  or  a  compensatory  emotion  ?  You 
do  not  even  know  whether  your  own  self  was  formed  by  a  wise 
deity  or  through  the  concurrence  of  crude  atoms — whether  it  be  a 
single  thinking  substance  or  only  a  multitude  of  monads,  composed 
exclusively  of  spiritual  matter  under  a  bodily  form,  or  of  really 
divisible  matter.  Are  you  able  to  know  that  Charon's  trusty  boat 
will  take  you  to  the  eternally  calm  and  happy  shores  of 
Elysium,  or  that  devastating  storms  will  drive  you  into  every  part  of 
the  earth,  and  an  eternally  blind  course  of  nature  transform  you 
into  a  thousand  other  existences,  if  you  do  not  know  the  pilot  who 
brought  you  to  the  motley  shores  of  this  life,  and  never  saw  the 
great  artificer  who  spun  and  wove  the  flower  of  your  life  and 
guided  your  fortune  as  with  a  staff  ?  Are  happiness  or  unhap- 
piness,  virtue  or  vice,  the  daughters  of  your  will  ?  What  a  contra- 
diction do  you  perceive  in  the  concept  of  a  loving  ruler  of  innumer- 
able worlds,  filled  with  infinite  multitudes  of  creatures,  minister- 
ing and  not  ministering,  useful  and  hurtful,  life-engendering  and 
life-destroying,  moral  and  immoral  !  He  that  implanted  in  your 
heart  the  sweetest  anticipations  of  the  happy  continuance  of  life 
after  seeming  death,  nevertheless  enshrouds  the  beatific  assurance 
in  inexplicable  darkness. 

"  Here,  then,  O  hapless  race,  is  presented  a  mirror  in  which  you 
may  observe  the  degradation  of  a  greatness  which  began  to  shun 
you  with  the  fall  of  brotherly  love  !  How  will  you  now  rear  the 
scaffold  of  your  happiness  and  found  the  throne  of  your  knowledge  ? 
Truly,  nothing  is  able  more  effectually  to  check  the  excesses  of 
your  vice  and  to  crown  with  well-deserved  blessing  the  small  rem- 
nant of  your  virtue,  than  learning  to  understand  and  practise  the 
good  and  the  right,  not  in  pretended  faith,  but  as  the  result  of  well- 
informed  conviction.  Then  immortality  will  not  merely  glimmer 
on  your  path  as  a  blessed  star  of  hope,  but  illuminate  it  with 
bright  expectation,  and  the  just  as  well  as  the  unjust  may  already 
mete  out  their  recompense  of  reward  this  side  the  grave.     And  if 


NOTICE   OF   SCHONHERR.  267 

your  earthly  happiness  is  to  realize  those  ideals  of  perfection  which 
the  mind  can  form  and  the  heart  longs  for,  you  must  learn  to  under- 
stand your  origin,  the  duty  of  your  existence,  and  the  ultimate  end 
of  your  destination.  You  must  learn  to  hear  and  know  your  noth- 
ingness and  your  divine  greatness  from  the  indubitable  tinith  that 
God  is  your  Father,  who  has  given  you  all  you  have,  and  who  can 
give  you  everything.  Then,  and  then  only,  will  peace  re-enter  your 
tabernacles,  concord  clasp  the  hearts  of  brothers,  love  unite  a  people 
of  brothers  on  earth,  joy  bound  for  you  in  every  blade  of  grass, 
God  live  for  you  in  the  smallest  flower,  appear  to  you  in  the  veiy 
dust,  and  the  brotherhood  of  all  the  earth  become  a  universal 
Eden."* 


On  the  subject  of  happiness  I  present  the  following-  extract: 

"  The  innate  or  implanted  desire  of  all  creatures  is  as  plain  as 
possible  ;  they  all  desire  happiness.  This  is  likewise  the  secret 
wish  of  man,  the  realization  of  which  depends,  however,  on  his 
growing  fit  for  happiness  and  worthy  of  it,  through  the  full  develop- 
ment of  all  his  faculties,  intellectual,  spiritual  and  moral,  and  the 
full  conviction  that  this  is  not  his  own  exclusive  privilege,  but  a 
privilege  he  shares  in  common  with  every  member  of  the  human 
family.  Still  it  must  be  remembered  that  worth  alone,  either 
viewed  personally  as  before  his  own  conscience,  or  relatively  with 
respect  to  others,  cannot  be  the  sole  end  of  moral  conduct,  for 
worth  is  far  more  than  the  mere  sound  of  it  ;  it  is  a  pleasing  and 
delightful  emotion,  springing  from  the  consciousness  of  the  proper 
fulfilment  of  duty  with  respect  to  ourselves  and  others,  and  assuring 
us  that,  as  pure  and  moral  beings,  we  are  fit  and  worthy  to  live  as 
men  amongst  men. 

"  But  if  the  cognition  of  moral  worth  is  always  accompanied  by  a 
pleasing  and  delightful  emotion,  or  at  least  by  peace  and  content- 
ment, does  it  not  seem  as  if  that  delightful  consciousness,  springing 
from  the  cognition  of  moral  worth,  were  the  true  end  of  moral  con- 
duct ?  Were  moral  precepts  not  presented  to  and  inscribed  upon 
our  heart  and  mind  in  order  to  make  us,  with  the  rest  of  the  human 
family,  partakers  of  happiness?    Or  are  we  to  disallow  that  the 

*1,  c.  p.  24. 


268  APPENDIX   B. 

consciousness  of  moral  worth,  of  peace  of  mind  and  contentment, 
is  a  delightful  emotion  and  constitutes  happiness  ?  But  it  is  im- 
possible that  there  should  be  consciousness  without  emotion,  and 
cognition  without  consciousness,  and  the  cognition  of  moral  worth 
without  consciousness  ;  every  emotion,  moreover,  must  be  pleasing 
or  displeasing,  and  every  emotion  which  springs  from  the  con- 
sciousness of  moral  worth,  peace  of  mind  and  contentment  must 
be  pleasing,  not  displeasing  ;  and  if  every  pleasing  emotion  enters 
into  the  notion  of  happiness,  it  follows  that,  the  pleasing  emotion 
which  springs  from  the  consciousness  of  moral  worth,  renders  us 
happy.  And  if  it  renders  us  happy  at  any  time,  or  only  once, 
as  it  necessarily  must,  it  follows  that  the  ultimate  reason  of  moral 
precepts  sets  forth  the  lofty  aim  of  placing  happiness  within  reach 
of  the  whole  human  family.  But  as  this  end  cannot  be  accom- 
plished otherwise  than  in  conformity  with  the  plan  of  moral  pre- 
cepts, we  learn  that  for  this  purpose  they  are  presented  to  the 
mind  and  inscribed  upon  the  heart.  The  ultimate,  true  and  sole 
aim  of  the  reasonable  activity  of  every  man  is,  and  must  remain, 
the  obtaining  of  his  happiness,  to  be  striven  for  in  the  assured 
way  of  truth  and  righteousness."  * 

The  views  of  Schonherr  we  have  considered  thus  far  do 
not  present  anything, at  all  out  of  the  way,  they  are  just  such 
views,  which  a  thoughtful  biblical  mind  would  naturally 
evolve  by  hard,  compact  reasoning,  and  some  of  his  positions 
are  singularly  well  taken,  and  expressed  in  strong,  terse  lan- 
guage. We  shall  now  consider  others  which  characterize 
the  method  of  his  inquiries,  and  his  presentation  of  doctrine. 

I  begin  with  the  term  God.  God,t  according  to  him,  de- 
notes not  absolute,  but  relative  Being,  and  Being  in  the  sense 
of  Existence.  Were  it  not  so,  how  could  Christ — who  de- 
clared that, 

"  *  To  this  end  was  I  born,  and  for  this  cause  came  T  into  the 
world,  that  I  should  bear  witness  unto  the  truth  '  (St.  John  xviii.  37) 
argue  as  He  did  with  the  Jews  (Jb.  x.   24  sqq.)  when  He  had  told 

*  1.  c.  p.  48. 

f  Panier  der  Wahrheit,  etc.      Konigsberg,  pp.  28,  29. 


NOTICE   OF   SCHONHERR.  269 

them:  *I  and  my  Father  are  one,' and  they  charged  Him  with 
blasphemy,  because  He,  a  man,  made  Himself  God.  He  stated, 
in  return  :  '  Is  it  not  written  in  your  law '  (Ps.  Ixxxii.  where  the  refer- 
ence is  to  persons  competent  in  virtue  of  their  office  to  exercise 
rule  and  authority  over  others)  '  I  said,  Ye  are  gods  ?  If  he  [or, 
zV]  called  them  gods  unto  whom  the  word  of  God  came  {i.  e. 
this  declaration  '  Ye  are  gods' ),  and  the  Scripture  cannot  be 
broken,  say  ye  of  Him,  whom  the  Father  hath  sanctified,  and  sent 
into  the  world,  Thou  blasphemest,  because  I  said,  I  am  the  Son 
of  God  ? '  If  the  term  God  did  not  denote  a  relation,  a  relative 
existence,  how  could  our  Lord,  who  said  :  *  I  ascend  to  my  God,' 
be  Himself  called  God  in  Holy  Scripture  ?  and  again,  if  called  God 
Himself,  how  could  He  call  the  Father  His  God  ?  It  will  not  do 
to  say  that  Christ  said  this  as  man,  and  that  He  was  not  called 
God  until  after  His  Ascension.  It  was  before  His  ascension  that 
Thomas,  under  the  overwhelming  sense  of  the  divine  dignity  which 
confronted  him  in  the  person  of  Jesus,  exclaimed  :  '  My  Lord  and 
my  God  ! '  But  Christ  spoke  of  God  as  of  His  God,  when  He 
spoke  of  His  ascension  ;  and  yet  He  said  :  *  No  man  hath  ascended 
up  to  Heaven,  but  He  that  came  down  from  Heaven,  even  the  Son 
of  Man  which  is  in  Heaven.'  It  was  with  reference  to  His  nature 
and  dignity,  as  the  Image  of  the  Glory  of  God,  and  to  His  intimate 
Union  with  God,  that  He  testified  concerning  Himself  :  *  I  and  my 
Father  are  one  ';  but  He  regarded  the  Father  in  His  Personal  and 
all-embracing  Being  as  different  from  Himself,  both  as  the  Cause 
of  His  own  existence  in  human  form,  and  as  the  Cause  of  His 
original  existence  as  the  Word  with  God,  when  He  testified  of  Him, 
saying  :  '  My  Father  is  greater  than  L'  The  concept  of  God  is  there- 
fore a  correlative  term,  indicating  the  reciprocal  relation  of  Beings, 
and  it  is  the  true  concept  of  God.  But  this  concept  of  God  leads 
to  a  Supreme  Being,  i,  e.,  to  God,  in  the  strictest  acceptation  of  the 
term." 

Next  in  order  we  have  to  present  Schonherr's  notion  of 
Diiality.'^ 

"  The  existence  of  two  original  Beings  doej  not  conflict  with  the 
Unity  of  God  either  agreeably  to  reason  or  to  Holy  Scripture  ;  for 

*  Die  Schutzirekr,  Konigsberg,  1834,  p.  6. 


2/0  APPENDIX   B. 

God-Being  presupposes  the  reciprocal  relation  of  Beings.  A  Being 
may  be  original,  eternal,  independent,  and  endowed  with  every 
attribute  we  can  think  of  in  order  to  raise  it  to  the  highest  degree  of 
exaltation,  without  being  on  that  account  God ;  for  so  long  as  there 
is  no  other  Being  beside  it,  it  is  only  a  Being ;  but  God  denotes  a 
Being  superior  to  other  Beings.  That  Being,  who  among  all  Be- 
ings belonging  to  the  universe,  is  the  Supreme  Being,  and  so  re- 
lated to  all  other  Beings  as  to  exercise  rule,  power  and  authority 
over  them,  guiding  and  ruling  them  according  to  His  Will,  that 
Being  is  God.  And  this  is  in  exact  agreement  with  the  sense  Holy 
Scripture  attaches  to  the  phrase  '  to  be  God,'  for  it  represents  God 
saying  to  Moses  :  '  He  {i.  e.  Aaron)  shall  be  thy  spokesman  unto  the 
people  ;  and  he  shall  be  thy  mouth  and  tliou  shalt  be  his  God.'  (This 
is  agreeably  to  Luther's  version  ;  the  '  instead  of  of  the  A.  V, 
cannot  be  regarded  as  a  felicitous  rendering  of  ?).  If,  then,  we 
meet  with  the  existence  of  two  Beings,  originally  eternal  and  inde- 
pendent, as  revealed  in  the  world  of  creation,  we  are  not  by  any 
means  warranted  to  make  it  conflict  with  the  Unity  of  God,  for,  in 
common  with  all  believers  of  all  time,  the  doctrine  of  the  original 
Beings  taught  in  Holy  Scripture  notwithstanding,  we  also  find 
therein  only  '  the  One  true  God.' 

' '  This  One  God  *  is  the  Supreme  or  Most  High  God,  who  can 
create  whatsoever  He  wills,  the  stronger,  and  alone  governing  Orig- 
inal Being  or  Jehovah  Elohim,  to  whom  the  weaker  is  always  in- 
ferior both  as  to  the  design  of  their  harmony  (because  two  ruling 
centres  must  produce  rupture,  not  union),  and  as  to  his  inferior 
power,  being  as  unable  to  increase  his  as  God  is  unable  to  lessen 
His.  Holy  Scripture  presents  water  as  the  formative  matter,  in 
which,  and  out  of  which,  God  rears  the  bright  and  fair  temple  of 
His  sacred  dwelling, 

"  On  this  point  Holy  Scripture  teaches  the  existence  of  only  two 
Elohim,  viz.:  one  Elohah  as  fire,  and  one  Elohah  as  water,  for 
these  two  are  uiicreated  {G&n .  i.  2);  they  go  before  Israel  in  the 
pillar  of  cloud  and  the  pillar  of  fire  (Ex.  xiii.  21);  they  only  ap- 
pear on  Sinai  (Ex.  xix.  21),  for  the  consuming  fire  was  only  in  a 
dark  cloud,  which  consists  of  water  ;  only  two  cherubim  (a  mani- 
fest instruction  as  to  the  number  of  the  Original  Beings)  are  placed, 

^Sieg  der gottlicheti  Offenba^'tmg,  pp.  30,  31  and  passim. 


NOTICE   OF   SCHONHERR.  2/ 1 

in  token  of  the  visible  presence  of  the  Elohim,  over  the  ark  of  the 
covenant  (Ex.  xxv.  i8),  between  them  the  Word  speaks  and  an- 
swers ;  it  originates  between  them,  as  the  Adonai.  And  what  does 
this  incarnate  Word  teach  of  the  Elohim  ?  '  Except  a  man  be  born 
of  water  and  of  the  Spirit,  he  cannot  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God 
(St.  John,  iii.  3,  5),  If  a  man  be  born  of  water  and  of  the  Spirit, 
he  must  originally  consist  only  of  water  and  of  the  Spirit ;  and 
though  the  first  man  was  made  of  the  dust  of  the  earth,  the  dust  of 
the  earth  must  originally  consist  of  water,  and  on  this  account  St. 
Peter  declares  that  by  the  word  of  God  the  earth  consisted  of  water 
and  in  water  [k^  v^aro'i  nai  81^  vdaro?,  2  Pet.  iii.  5).  If  at 
the  end  of  the  works  of  creation  these  Elohim,  or  the  two  Original 
Beings,  cease  to  work  in  concert,  Jehovah  Elohim,  i.  e.  the  more 
potent  one  of  these  Original  Beings,  appears  on  a  separate  day  of 
creation,  succeeding  the  day  in  which  the  Elohim  rested,  alone,  and 
begins  not  only  a  new  formation  of  one  man  from  the  solid  dust 
particles  of  the  ground,  but  builds  out  of  him  his  wife  ;  Jehovah 
Elohim  alone  plants  a  garden  (before  that,  already  some  herbs  of 
the  field,  which  as  yet  were  not  in  the  earth),  and  causes  the  mist 
to  ascend  and  the  rain  to  fall.  And  as  all  these  things  prove  His 
pre-eminent  power,  so  He  declares  Himself  at  the  time  of  the  giving 
of  the  Law  as  God  alone,  although  both  the  Original  Beings  under 
their  name  of  Elohim  are  also  present,  and  had  before  conversed 
with  Moses,  and  though  the  inferior  or  weaker  Elohah,  as  dark, 
was  in  the  dark  cloud,  when  the  superior  or  stronger  Elohah  was  in 
the  midst  of  it,  and  so  he  was  likewise  present  in  the  dark  cloud  in 
the  pillar  of  fire  and  the  pillar  of  cloud  for  the  guidance  and  pro- 
tection of  Israel.  The  creation,  then,  with  its  preservation,  in- 
crease, perfection,  and  government,  is  the  work  of  the  stronger  of 
the  Original  Beings,  i.  e.  of  God,  or  of  the  Jehovah  of  the  Elohim." 

It  would  lead  me  altogether  too  far  to  reproduce  here  the 
very  interesting  testimony  from  nature  which  Schonherr  ad- 
vances in  support  of  this  dualism,  which  runs  through  the 
whole  universe  and  may  be  traced  in  every  department  of 
natural  science  ;  a  few  hints  in  that  direction  must  suffice  as 
embodying  principles  and  results  : 

"Investigation  shows  that  two  original,  /.^..uncreated,  elements 


272  APPENDIX   B. 

enter  into  the  composition  of  everything  created  by  means  of  a 
fonnative  law.  The  two  original,  uncreated  elements  are  :  i. 
Light  and  fire  (identical  as  to  essence,  different  only  in  expres- 
sion) ;  and  2.  Darkness  or  water  (essentially  identical).  Earth  and 
air  are  not  original,  but  fire  and  water  are  ;  whatever  is  created, 
animate  or  inanimate,  mineral,  vegetable,  and  animal,  may  be  re- 
ferred to  the  primary,  original,  uncreated  activity  of  fire  and  water, 
the  two  Elohim  ;  they  are  the  only  two  simple  ox  primary  potencies  or 
Beings  ;  all  other  existences  are  derived  or  complex.  Light  is  an  em- 
anation or  effluetice  of  fire,  simple,  not  complex,  incoi-poreal,  spiritual 
(it  is  interesting  to  compare  Schonherr's  definition  with  the  Milto- 
nian  line,  '  Bright  effluence  of  bright  essence  increate  ').  Light  is 
simple  and  spiritual — diffuses  itself  as  the  effluence  of  fire  in  radiat- 
ing form,  in  or  through  the  original  darkness,  or,  what  amounts  to 
the  same  thing,  through  water,  like  itself,  spiritual.  These  two 
primary,  original,  uncreated  Beings  act  and  react  each  on  the 
other,  or  in  concert,  and  explain,  beyond  all  contradiction  or  refuta- 
tion, the  otherwise  inexplicable  phenomena  of  sound,  color,  figure, 
force,  whatever  is  real,  whatever  is  possible,  every  change  and  every 
effect  in  man  or  in  nature." 

It  will  be  admitted  that  the  language  of  Gothe,  who  cer- 
tainly cannot  be  accused  of  religious  fanaticism,  runs  almost 
parallel  to  Schonherr's,  when  he  enunciates  in  his  Farben- 
lehre  the  following  : 

"  Black,  as  the  representative  of  darkness,  leaves  our  organ  in  a 
state  of  rest ;  white,  as  the  representative  of  light,  excites  its  ac- 
tivity" (p.  55).  Color,  he  thinks,  may  be  allegorically,  symbolic- 
ally, or  mystically  explained  as  a  sort  of  language  of  ihe  p7imary 
conditions,  adding:  "Having  first  thoroughly  grasped  and  exam- 
ined the  separation  of  yellow  and  blue,  and  especially  the  greater 
intensity  towards  red,  showing  first  the  mutual  inclination  of  two 
opposites  and  their  union  into  a  third,  we  cannot  resist  a  certain 
mysterious  intuition  that  these  separate,  opposite  beings  admit  of  a 
spiritual  import  ;  and  observing  how  they  produce  green  down- 
wards and  red  upwards,  explain  the  first  as  the  earthly,  the 
second  as  the  heavenly  products  of  the  Elohim "  (p.  227).  In 
another  place  Gothe  pronounces  the  view  that  all  colors  mixed 
together  make  white  an  absurdity,  which,  with  many  other  absurd* 


NOTICE   OF  SCHONHERR.  2/3 

ities,  had  been  received  as  true  for  upwards  of  a  century,  in  defi- 
ance of  ocular  evidence  to  the  contrary  ;  and  that  he,  for  his  part, 
felt  convinced  that  color  is  the  joint  product  of  light  and  that  which 
is  opposed  to  it.  Newton's  doctrine  he  declared  to  possess  only  the 
appearance  of  being  monodic  and  unitory,  saying  that  he  began 
with  first  charging  his  unity  with  the  very  diversity  he  sought  to  de- 
duce from  it,  whereas  he  (Gothe)  held  that  it  was  better  and  easier 
to  develop  and  construct  diversity  from  an  admitted  duality  {ib.  p. 
209,  old  edition). 

On  the  subject  of  the  Word,^-  Schonherr  takes  the  text, 
based  on  Rom.  iv,  17;  Psalm  xxxiii.  6,  and  Heb.  i.  3,  "  God 
calls  to  that  which  is  not,  that  it  be,  and  upholds  (preserves) 
all  things  by  the  Word  of  His  power."  Sou 7td  \N2iS  the  be- 
ginning- of  Creation,  sound  is  now  everlasting,  and  will  never 
end.  God  still  creates  and  upholds  all  things  by  the  Word 
of  His  power  (St.  John  i.  1-4),  and  in  the  midst  of  the  inces- 
sant operations  and  effects  in  the  universe,  God  calls  to  that 
which  is  not  yet  formed,  by  the  Word,  that  it  spring  into  being. 
"By  faith  we  understand  that  the  ages,  Tov<i  aliSva'i,  3.re. 
framed  by  the  Word  of  God,  so  that  things  which  are  seen 
were  not  made  of  things  which  do  appear."  (Heb.  xi.  3). 
This  rather  difficult  verse  Schonherr  construes,  following 
the  original  Greek  rather  than  Luther's  poor,  daring  and  false 
rendering  that  the  world  was  made  out  of  nothing,  thus  : 
Whatever  now,  in  time,  appears  to  us  as  formed,  became 
what  it  is  from  something  which  before  had  not  appeared, 
and  that  imports,  according  to  him,  that  the  two  primary 
Beings  were  at  that  time  not  yet  reciprocally  influencing  each 
other,  on  that  account  there  was  not  anything  formed  visible, 
but  afterwards  their  united  power,  operating  in  or  by  the  Word, 
produced  what  does  or  will  appear.  But  Elohim  are  fire  and 
water.  What  ?  Are  fire  and  water,  if  they  act  in  concert,  able 
to  produce  sound  ?  Can  they  speak  ?  Let  those  who  do  not 
know  this  read  Exod.  xx.,  where  the  Elohim  (v.  i)  out  of  the 


*See  more  on  the  Word,  page  281. 


274  APPENDIX   B. 

fire  and  the  cloud,  and  Jehovah,  or  the  consuming-  fire- 
primary  Being-  (v.  2,sqq.)  from  out  of  the  midst  of  that  cloud, 
proclaimed  the  Law  from  Mount  Sinai  to  a  multitude  of  six 
hundred  thousand  men  ;  or  in  Deuteronomy  iv.  and  v.,  how 
often  Moses  reminded  them  of  the  speech  of  Jehovah  out  of 
the  fire  in  the  cloud  at  the  giving  of  the  Law.  God  spoke 
almost  daily  to  Moses  out  of  the  pillar  of  cloud  and  the  pillar 
of  fire,  and  why  should  fire  and  water  in  concerted  action  be 
unable  to  produce  sound,  words  and  speech  ? 

Very  striking  is  the  circumstance  that  throughout  the  his- 
tory of  Creation,  Moses  presents  the  act  of  the  Divine  speech 
in  the  singular  of  the  verb,  while  there  is  a  plurality  of  per- 
sons (i.  e.  "HON"!  is  the  3d  per,  sing.,  and  D^p^S  the  nom- 
inative plural).  Knowing  that  there  are  but  two  Elohim, 
we  are  warranted  to  conclude  that  they  used  but  one  speech. 
And  here,  where  Moses  narrates  the  first  permanent  act  of 
these  Elohim,  i.  e.  the  production  of  light  by  their  speaking, 
seems  to  be  proper  place  to  explain  the  reason  of  his  correct 
procedure. 

For  if  two  Elohim,  unequal  in  power,  according  to  their 
motion  in  infinite  space,  come  in  contact,  so  that  the  stronger 
moves  into  the  weaker,  and  the  weaker  moves  toward  the 
stronger  (for  equal  powers  of  the  Elohim  would  rebound  from 
each  other),  and  there  ensues  from  the  contact  a  reciprocal 
effect,  their  two  different  powders  combine  with  one  united 
power — and  this  united  power  of  the  two  Elohim  is  the  power 
of  the  Word,  which  in  the  beginning,  at  their  first  contact, 
at  their  first  reciprocal  effect,  produced  the  one  speech  be- 
tween the  two. 

In  support  of  this  position  Schonherr  now  adduces  the 
testimony  of  nature,  of  which  I  give  a  brief  outline.  Sowid, 
this  element  of  speech,  if  felt  or  heard,  invariably  requires 
more  than  one  Being,  one  Power,  one  Body,  in  order  to 
operate  (produce  an  effect)  and  sound  at  the  same  time  ;  but 
one  always  operates  on  another,  and  produces  vibration,  or 
reciprocal  motion.  And  this  blending  of  the  peculiar  man- 
ner of  sound  in  the  one,  with  the  peculiar  manner  of  sound 


NOTICE   OF   SCHONHERR.  275 

in  the  other  is  sound,  or  the  simultaneous  expression  of  their 
peculiar  powers  in  reciprocal  operation.  Not  a  single  in- 
stance can  be  pointed  out  to  show  that  the  greatest  fire,  the 
highest  wave,  or  a  projectile  of  the  greatest  velocity  did  ever 
produce  a  sound  without  resistance  offered  by  something  else. 
This  is  another  proof  of  the  necessary  existence  of  more  than 
one  Primary  Being,  for  the  production  of  sound  and  speech, 
of  the  world  and  of  creatures.  One  must  always  operate  on 
the  other,  communicate  its  motion  to  it,  and  only  by  the 
power  of  the  one,  and  the  simultaneous  commotion  of  the 
other  offering  resistance,  sound  is  produced.  This  runs 
throughout  nature.  As  every  star  in  the  light-track  of  its 
lofty  course  through  the  heavens  speaks  and  sings,  so  every 
flower,  every  dust-particle  on  earth  touched  by  its  rays  of 
light,  makes  response  ;  the  flight  of  the  birds  answers  the 
roaring  of  the  sea  ;  the  sap  in  plants,  and  liquids  in  animal 
organisms  conducted  by  the  light  of  life  respond  to  the  rush 
of  fire-driven  vapors  in  the  clouds,  and  the  whole  animate 
creation  is  vocal  with  sound  and  song. 

Fire,  the  stronger,  ever  works  within,  and  Water,  the 
weaker,  works  around  it  in  the  clouds  without ;  fire  by  itself, 
or  water  by  itself  has  never  emitted  a  sound  ;  alone,  their 
speech  has  never  been  heard  ;  combined,  they  invariably 
produce  sound,  and  all  bodies  formed  of  fire  and  water, 
always  sound  and  resound  by  them,  though  their  sound  may 
not  may  not  be  heard  by  gross  ears.  Human  speech  and 
animal  sounds  mirror  it  forth.  The  efficient  power  of  the 
outward  object  enters  by  means  of  light  and  darkness  through 
the  senses  of  the  body,  which  is  of  dark  water,  into  the  soul, 
which  is  fire  or  light  in  the  blood.  The  impressions  from 
all  the  rays  of  the  veins  concentrate  in  the  focus  of  the  heart, 
under  the  reaction  from  all  the  ends  of  the  ramified  watery 
nerve-tree.  Conformably  to  these  impressions  the  fire  and 
the  water  in  the  blood  are  brought  into  homogeneous  rela- 
tion to  the  objects  and  bound  in  full  flow  to  the  lungs.  Here 
they  meet  with  resistance,  they  vibrate,  /.  e.,  they  impart 
motion  to   the  lungs,  the  lungs  in  like  manner  impart  it  to 


2/6  APPENDIX   B. 

the  investing  air,  produce  and  bring  forth  the  inner  word,  and 
then  the  word  analogous  to  the  object,  by  means  of  the 
organs  of  speech,  speeds  to  the  humidity  of  the  air,  which  is 
composed  of  columns  of  light  or  fire,  and  of  darkness  or 
water,  and  to  the  near  objects  (also  of  dark  and  light  matter), 
which  it  percusses,  and  thus,  as  a  word  designating  its  object, 
it  is  heard  by  hearing  beings. 

He  then  shows  how  fire  is  able  to  produce  sound  and 
therefore  speech,  by  analyzing  the  phenomenon  of  lightning, 
the  more  homely  one  of  water  in  a  vessel  placed  over  fire 
showing  vibration  and  the  emission  of  sound  ;  the  sound  of 
fire  when  it  encounters  resistance  and  causes  the  adjacent 
earth  to  tremble  ;  the  sound  of  water  as  it  gushes  from  the 
earth,  and  the  roaring  sound  of  ignited  powder.* 

According  to  Schonherr  Impe7ietrability  in  the  Primal 
Essence  is  a  foregone  conclusion  of  Christian  inquiry.  The 
Bible  speaks  of  a  living,  a  real  God  ;  the  mere  circumstance 
that  in  our  conception  of  Him  we  cognize  Him  as  operative 
and  real,  as  a  substance,  does  not  render  that  conception 
material.  The  existence  of  God  has,  as  it  were,  been  evapo- 
rated into  Xh^idea  of  God,  /.  e.,  it  has  become  a  mere  empty 
thought,  a  thouglit  without  all  reality  ;  this  has  been  for  a 
long  while  the  well-founded  complaint  of  truly  religious  and 
thoughtful  men.  So  far  from  dishonoring  God,  we  glorify 
Him  by  making  our  conception  of  Him  a  reality.  Power  is 
the  c?iUSdi\  {tir-sdchlic/i)  or  rather  the  primarily-essential  {ur- 
wesentlich)  ability  of  effect  ( Wirkung)  ;  effect  as  an  effluence 
or  going  out  (motion)  of  power,  involves  a  limitation  of  the 
same,  while  this  limitation  involves  an  impletion  to  be  limited. 
Hence  power,  as  primarily-essential,  or  self-impletion,  is 
tantamount  to  self-existence,  and  because  it  is  impossible 
that  where  it  is,  there  can  be  something  else,  it  follows  that 
its  operative  and,  therefore,  real  being,  or  its  essence,  must 
be  impenetrable.  According  to  the  Bible,  then,  God  is  the 
primarily   essential  power  in  self-impletion   and    limitation, 

*  Grundzuge  der  Erkenntniss,  etc.,  p.  225,  sqq. 


NOTICE   OF  SCHONHERR.  277 

that  is,  ill  space  ;  our  God  is  real,  and  omnipresent,  i.  e.^  ex- 
istent (Ps.  cxxxix.  7-10  ;  Acts  xvii.  27,  28). 

Schonlierr  admitted  space  and  time  only  in  a  certain  sense 
as  conditions  of  presentative  thought  (/.  e.  so  far  as  they 
respect  the  opposite  inconceivable  presumption  of  infinite 
space,  and  infinite,  inconceivable  time)  ;  he  forbade  all  in- 
quiry outside  the  concepts  of  space  and  time.  That  which 
does  not  manifest  itself  within  the  limits  of  space  and  time, 
ca7i  not  be  the  object  of  human  inquiry.  But  we  need  not 
exceed  those  limits  ;  the  divinely  revealed  word  meets  every 
demand  within  the  full  compass  of  its  contents,  for  resting  on 
the  visible  and  experimental  in  space  and  time,  it  satisfies  to 
the  full,  and  exhausts  the  spiritual  wants  of  our  nature.  Out- 
side of  space  filled  by  the  Primary  Beings  and  of  their  opera- 
tive acts  in  the  process  of  creation  ( lVerde7t=^becom'mg)  there 
is  no  province  where  man  can  seek  or  find  anything.  Revela- 
tion, though  it  takes  us  not  beyond  those  confines,  leads  us 
nevertheless  to  the  profundities  of  the  Godhead  (i  Cor.  ii.  10).* 

THE  LIMITS  OF  THOUGHT. 

'  We  have  a  book,  called  the  Bible,  composed  of  two  rec- 
ords, an  older  and  a  newer,  containing  revelations  of  God, 
from  which  is  derived  our  knowledge  of  Him.  The  more 
ancient  document  begins  with  the  creation  which  took  place 
in  the  beginning,  but  gives  us  no  account  of  anything  prior 
to  that  beginning  ;  we  are  consequently  unable  to  know  any- 
thing of  the  Being  and  operations  of  the  Deity  prior  to  that 
beginning,  for  reason  cannot  enlighten  us  on  this  head,  and 
we  are  without  a  divine  revelation  which  could.  If  the  record 
testifies  that  the  heavens  and  the  earth  were  created  in  the 
beginnijig,  it  imports  That  this  occurred  before  the  beginning 
of  time,  for  the  work  of  the  creation  marks  the  beginning  of 
time.  Before  that  beginning  was  eternity — i.  e.,  ever-during 
existence,  which  cannot  be  computed,  cannot  be  understood.! 

*  Ebel,  Schlilssel,  etc.  pp.  19-21. 

fOpitz,  Lichtin  der  Dunkelheit,  etc.,  p.  6,  sqq.    Leipzig,  1821. 


2/8  APPENDIX   B. 


ETERNITY,    OLAM,  ^ON.* 

[The  Scripture  quotations  do  not  conform  verbally  to 
Luther's  or  to  the  Authorized  Versions.  The  Hebrew  words 
?i<,  D^iV,  etc,  and  the  Greek  words  aioov,  aiaorio?,  are  for 
greater  convenience  given  in  English  letters.] 

"  If  I  consult  the  Bible,  I  hear  indeed  that  the  Supreme 
Spirit  says  of  Himself  :  'Before  me  no  God  (El)  was  formed, 
neither  shall  there  be  after  me  '  (Is.  xliii.  lo)  ;  'I  am  the 
first  and  the  last,  and  beside  me  no  Elohim  '  (xliv.  6)  ;  '  I 
am  the  Lord,  and  there  is  none  else,  and  no  God  except  I* 
(xlv.  5)  ;  '  I  am  the  Lord  that  doeth  all  these  things '  (v.  7)  ; 
'The  heavens  are  my  throne,  and  the  earth  is  my  footstool ; 
.  .  all  those  things  hath  mine  hand  made  ;  and  all  those 
things  have  come  into  being'  (Ixvi.  i,  2,)  convincing  me 
that  the  Speaker  is  the  Great  God,  the  Creator  of  the  world, 
who  cannot  have  had  a  beginning,  and  must  always  have 
been  existing,  but  I  do  not  find  that  the  Bible  says  of  Him  : 
He  is  Eternal.  In  neither  Testament  can  be  found  a  word 
answering  to  the  concept  of  eternal  (everlasting)  importing 
that  something  will  not  only  exist  forever,  but  that  it  has  al- 
ways existed,  and  has  had  no  beginning,  for  01am  in  the  Old 
Testament,  and  Aion  in  the  New,  do  not  ca'-ry  that  sense. 
Attending  to  the  sense  of  those  words  in  the  following  places, 
I  find  that  my  conviction  is  well  grounded  :  '  In  that  day  will 
I.  .  .  I  will  build  it  as  in  the  days  of  Olajn  '  (Amos  ix.  1 1)  ; 
'  Let  them  feed  in  Bashan  and  Gilead,  as  in  the  days  of  Olam  * 
(Mic.  vii.  14)  ;  '  The  offering  .  .  .  shall  be  pleasant  unto  the 
Lord,  as  in  the  days  of  Olam,  and  as  in  former  years '  (Mai. 
iii.  4)  ;  '  from  Olam  to  Olam''  (Ps.  ciii.  17)  ;  or  'continuous 
generations  '  (Luke  i.50) ; '  before  the  days  of  Olam'  Q^\z.  v.  i); 
'  in  the  Ola?ni7n  '  (Eccl.  i.  10)  ;  '  man  goeth  to  the  house  of  his 
Olam'  (xii.  5).  '  All  the  land  which  thou  seest,  to  thee  will 
I  give  it,  and  to  thy  seed,'  not  'forever,'  but  '  unto  Olam  '(Gen. 

*Opitz,  Lichtin  der  Bunkelheit,  etc.  pp.  6,  10.    Leipzig^.  1821. 


NOTICE   OF   SCHONIIERR.  2/9 

xiii.  15)  ;  and   in   Ch.  xvii,  8,  not  'for  an  everlasting-  posses- 
sion,' but  '  as  long-  as  this  Olaiii  (this  world)  lasteth.' " 

The  Scriptures  manifestly  attach  to  the  words  Olam  and 
Aion  a  sense  different  from  that  of  time  in  general,  or  of 
eternity,  for  days  and  years  cannot  be  predicated  of  eternity, 
and  eternities,  like  eternal  times,  are  unthinkable.  Olam, 
Aion,  and  Aionios  do  not  mean/^r  se  either  time  or  eternity, 
and  it  is  inconceivable  that  two  such  different  and  opposite 
terms  as  time  and  eternity  should  be  expressed  in  Hebrew 
and  Greek  by  one  word,  denoting  in  turn  time  and  eternity. 
There  is  neither  in  German,  nor  in  English,  a  single  word  by 
which  the  true  idea  of  the  word  could  be  adequately  expressed, 
for  the  word,  though  it  does  not  signify  either  time  or  eter- 
nity, is  ambiguous.  Olam  and  Aion  not  only  signify  that 
which  has  come  into  being  (become,  geworden)^  but  also  the 
duration  of  it,  which,  agreeably  to  the  nature  and  end  of  the 
same,  viz.,  in  respect  oiwhat  it  has  become,  and  why^  may 
be  short,  long,  or  for  ever.  The  connection  and  context  of 
every  passage  in  which  they  occur  determines  their  meaning 
{notat  integrant  ciijiis  rei,  de  qua  senno  est,  durationem; 
Coccejus).  Now,  the  first  thing  that  became,  the  whole  con- 
sisting of  several  parts,  is  the  great  Olam,  i.  e.,  the  heavens 
and  the  earth,  which  the  Elohim  created  in  the  beginning. 
Now,  since  the  great  Olam,  which  became  in  the  beginning, 
{i.  e.  the  heavens  and  the  earth),consistsof  many  parts,  intended 
to  be  the  abode  of  spirits,  and  agreeably  to  that  intention  in- 
vested with  the  property  of  duration,  the  Bible  speaks  of 
Olamim  and  Aions  in  the  plural,  i.  e.  of  regions,  worlds,  and 
durations.  "  Is  there  anything  whereof  it  may  be  said,  see, 
this  is  new  ?  it  hath  been  in  the  Olamim,"  (in  the  durations, 
Eccl.  i.  10)  ;  "  I  have  considered  the  days  from  the  beginning, 
the  years  of  the  Olamim"  (Psalms  Ixxvii.  6) ;  "  By  faith  we 
understand  that  the  Aions  (ages)  have  been  framed  by  the 
word  of  God,"  and  that  "  the  Aions  (ages)  were  made  by  the 
Son  "  (Heb.  xi.  3  ;  i.  2),  the  wisdom  of  God  which  had  been 
hidden,  and  foreordained  "from  (before)  the  Aions"  (i  Cor. 
ii.  7)  ;  and  to  God  Himself  is  ascribed,  i  Tim.  i.  17,  as  "to 


280  APPENDIX   B. 

the  incorruptible  king  of  the  Aions  (worlds),  the  invisible, 
only  wise  {I)  God,  honor  and  glory  (not  "  for  ever  and  ever" 
but)  "  unto  the  Aions  of  the  Aions,"  {i.  e.  throughout  all  the 
durations). 

Man,  like  any  other  rational  creature,  destined  to  exist 
always,  passes,  before  he  attains  salvation  (i  Thess,  v.  9) 
through  two  Aions.  During  the  first  time  of  his  existence  his 
abode  is  in  the  present  world,  which  is  his  first  Aion  ;  if 
death  removes  him  therefrom,  he  passes  into  the  second 
Aion,  the  future  world,  or  as  it  is  expressed  Eccl.  xii.  5,  "  into 
the  house  of  his  01am  ";  there  are  thus  for  us  two  Aions,  the 
present  and  the  future.  Matt,  xxviii.  20  ;  Mark  x.  30  ;  i  Tim. 
vi.  I']  ;  2  Tim.  iv.  10;  Luke  xvi.  8  ;  xx.  34,  35.  A  new  Aion 
begins  with  the  resurrection  and  appearing  of  the  Judge  of 
the  world,  and  who  can  tell  the  number  of  the  coming  Aions 
to  the  establishment  of  the  kingdom  of  God  ?  Hence  the 
Aions  of  Aions,  or  the  many  successive  originations  and  du- 
rations. 

Now,  since  Olam  denotes  not  only  that  which  has  become, 
but  also  its  duration,  I  understand  the  import  of  the  Scrip- 
tural declaration  to  the  Israelites  :  "  this  shall  be  to  you  a  right 
in  Olam,"  according  to  the  rendering,  an  eternal  right,  an 
eternal  continuance,  z.  e.,  as  long  as  this  Olam,  which  has 
been  instituted  {geworden,  become)  amongst  you,  as  long  as 
this  your  prescribed  mode  of  worship  shall  endure — and  it 
did  endure  until  Christ  came  with  the  Gospel,  and  prepared 
thereby  the  new  way — so  long  shall  this  right  and  this  cove- 
nant remain  in  operation,  and  be  obligatory  on  you  and  your 
descendants. 

I  feel  convinced  that  the  word  eternal  iewig)  in  our  sense 
is  not  wanted  in  the  Bible,  which  begins  with  the  creation, 
but  in  the  description  thereof  does  not  go  beyond  the  great 
Olam,  and  reveals  nothing  of  the  existence  and  operation  of 
the  Great  Spirit  before  Olam,  and  therefore  it  has  no  use  for 
the  word  eternal  {ewig). 

I  might  add  that  the  concept  eternal  is  incompatible  with 
our  finite  understanding  ;  we  say  indeed,  by  way  of  defini- 


NOTICE   OF  SCHONHERR.  28 1 

tion,  that  that  which  has  no  beginning-  and  no  end  is  eternal, 
but  we  cannot  think  it.  The  moment  we  attempt  to  think  it, 
and  go  backward  or  forward  into  ever-during  Being  or  Exist- 
ence, our  thoughts  vanish,  and  our  thinking  must  cease,  be- 
cause we  cannot  think  of  anything  without  beginning  and 
without  end.  Our  understanding  can  only  think  of  time,  and 
of  that  which  began  with,  and  continues  in  it,  not  that  which 
cannot  be  defined  or  computed  by  time. 

THE   ORIGIN   OF   EVIL. 

This  dualism,  as  unfolded  by  Schonherr,  sheds  light  on  the 
perplexing  question  of  the  origUi  and  existence  of  evil.  The 
difficulties  of  the  question  are  tersely  put  by  Ebel  :*  "What 
are  we  to  make  of  the  weeds  and  the  enemy  that  sows  them  }  '' 
Do  the  enemy  and  his  work  come  from  God  ?  Does  a 
fountain  yield  sweet  and  bitter  ?  If  sin  be  defection  from 
God,  to  whom  and  for  whom  does  He  give  laws  ?  Whom 
does  He  teach,  punish,  judge  ?  Himself?  Or  is  evil  simply 
illusory  and  not  real  ?  How  are  we  to  reconcile  the  unde- 
niable reality  of  evil  with  the  divine  attributes  of  omnipo- 
tence, omniscience,  love  and  justice,  unless  we  admit  the 
existence  of  potential  evil  outside  of  God  ?  What  was  to 
prevent  an  omnipotent  God  to  create  perfect  creatures  ? 
Where  is  His  wisdom  if  He  did  7iot  create  them  ?  Is  it 
wisdom  intentionally  to  introduce  an  innumerable  host  ot 
disorders  and  corruptions  into  His  works,  and  then  from  ab- 
horrence of  them  exert  all  His  power  to  vanquish  them  ? 
Would  that  not  be  a  horrible  play  with  innocent  creatures  ? 
Would  it  not  exhibit  God  contradicting  Himself  in  His  dispo- 
sition and  ends  of  government  ? 

The  only  solution  of  this  otherwise  inexplicable  and  in- 
comprehensible riddle  lies  in  the  acceptation  of  the  Biblical 
statement  that  there  is  an  Originator  of  Evil,  the  prince  of 
this  world  ruling  in  the  darkness  of  this  world  (St.  John  xiv. 
30  ;  Eph.  vi.  12);   and  of  the  duality  and  real  operativeness 

*  Verstand  unci  Vernunft,  part  2,  p.  62,  sqq. 


282  APPENDIX   B. 

of  the  primary  Beings,  in  order  that  God,  the  Lord,  be  not 
charged  with  sin  and  blasphemed  as  the  author  of  sin  and 
death  ;  and  that  man  may  courageously  go  forth  to  battle 
with  evil,  which  entered  the  world  without  the  instrumen- 
tality and  fault  of  God  (although  He  allowed  it),  in  expectation 
of  ultimate  deliverance  from  its  thraldom,  as  well  of  its  abso- 
lute destruction,  whenever  in  God's  own  good  time  it  can  be 
done  without  injury  to  the  good  (St.  Matth.  xiii.  29,  30). 
Schonherr  is  at  special  pains  to  separate  the  second  primary 
Being  from  the  cause  of  the  existing  incongruity  in  creation. 
It  was  not  an  obscuring  of  the  consciousness  of  the  second 
primary  Being,  but  the  disturbance  of  the  just  reciprocal 
causality,  and  on  that  account  he  gave  the  utmost  promi- 
nence to  the  behests  of  the  Divine  Will  in  all  our  relations, 
e.  g.,  the  necessary  supremacy  of  the  spirit  over  the  flesh. 
He  holds  that  the  resistance  and  opposition  of  the  enemy  to 
the  sacred,  fundamental  laws  of  God,  is  the  true  cause  of  sin 
and  evil  in  the  world  ;  while  its  conquest  and  destruction  are 
assigned  to  the  reconciling  power  of  the  Saviour,  the  Son  of 
God,  who  "  was  manifested  that  He  might  destroy  the  works 
of  the  devil"  (i  John  iii.  8). 

THE   KINGDOM   OF  GOD. 

Schonherr's  conception  of  it  is  strictly  Biblical,  and  pre- 
sents it  as  a  life  under  and  in  God,  according  to  the  degree  of 
spiritual  development,  and  of  personal  consciousness.  The 
children  of  God  are  to  be  found  in  true  obedience  and  true 
love  only  where  the  Father  is  known,  who  has  begotten  us 
after  His  own  image.  According  to  his  representation  the 
whole  of  creation  is  clearly  cognized  as  truly  and  really  liv- 
ing, moving  and  being,  out  of  the  breath  of  God,  through 
the  power  of  God,  and  iu  the  Spirit  of  God,  and  God  Himself 
truly  all-penetrating  or  pervading  the  whole ;  and  the  King- 
dom of  God  is  that  condition  of  man  and  of  the  whole 
creation  in  which — ist.  The  ends  of  God  are  perfectly  at- 
tained  without   the    least   obstruction    or  disturbance;  and 


NOTICE   OF   SCHONHERR.  283 

2d.  All  creatures  capable  of  it  will,  under  His  influence  and 
government,  enjoy  the  development  of  their  powers  and  un- 
mingled  happiness.* 

THE  PERSON   OF  THE  GOD-MAN   CHRIST  JESUS. 

The  concept  "  Word  "  or  "  Logos  "  imports  : 

1.  A  living,  active,  operative,  efficient  existence  (Setn) 
in  God  ;  for  "  all  things  were  made  through  Him,  and  without 
Him  was  not  anything  made  that  is  made."  (John  i.  3). 

2.  An  existence  founded  in  God,  necessitated  by  the  exist- 
ence of  God,  or,  an  existence  founded  in  the  manifestation  of 
the  existence  of  the  Essence  (Substance)  of  God,  revealing 
(before  the  creation  of  the  world)  energizing  activity,  to  which 
Christ  reverts,  as  to  "  the  glory  He  had  with  the  Father  be- 
fore the  world  was"  (John  xvii.  5). 

3.  A  determinating  existence  begotten  of  God  for  the  pur- 
pose of  creation,  or,  an  existence  so  far  modified  as  to  ener- 
gizing activity  as  to  involve  the  springing  into  being  ( Werden, 
becoming)  of  all  things  at  the  creation  of  the  world  ;  in  this 
respect  Christ  is  called  "  the  first-born  of  all  creation '' 
"  through  whom  all  things  were  made,"  and  are  preserved, 
for  God  iipholdeth  all  things  by  the  Word  of  His  power  (Heb. 
i.  3  ;  Col.  i.  17;  John  i.  3),  Who  is  the  effulgence  of  His 
glory,  and  the  very  image  of  His  substance. 

The  Primal  Word,  accordingly,  is  confluent  with  the  sub- 
stance of  God,  and  must  not  be  regarded  as  substantiality 
separate  from  Him,  and  the  creative  Word  not  as  a  creature 
but  as  the  first-born.  Schonherr  distinguishes  the  creative 
Word  from  the  Primal  Word  on  scriptural  authority,  for  the 
Bible  names  the  First-born  {Ttp^roroKoz)  and  the  Only 
Begotten  {^ovoyeinj^). 

Such  an  explanation  is  neither  prejudicial  to  the  Deity,  nor 
to  the  eternal  nature  of  the  Only  Begotten,  and  affords  like- 
wise a  view  of  His  Incarnation  in  the  fulness  of  time,  in  per- 

*  Ebel,  SchlUssd,  p.  80. 


284  APPENDIX   B. 

feet  accord  with  Holy  Scripture  ("  for  in  Him  dwelleth  all  the 
fulness  of  the  Godhead  bodily,"  Col.  ii.  9)  ;  for,  provided  the 
Nature  of  the  Logos  be  conceived  after  this  manner,  it  is  not 
at  all  difficult  to  harmonize  the  declarations  of  Christ  and 
His  apostles  on  this  head.* 

Nor  does  this  view  of  the  case  involve  us  in  any  of  the  nu- 
merous contradictions  in  respect  of  the  human  nature  of 
Christ,  of  which  the  history  of  the  Church  chronicles  so  many 
details.  The  mutual  communication  of  the  two  natures  in 
Christ  becomes  self-evident  after  we  have  gained  a  clear  idea 
as  to  what  constitutes  a  person^  the  Ego.  The  German  word 
for  consciousness,  "  Bewusstsein,"  recognizes,  according  to 
Ebel,  the  duality  of  the  ultimate,  i.  e.  the  primary,  reason  of 
it,  it  carries  a  dual  sense  derivatively,  viz.,  Sein,  to  be  or  be- 
ing, and  bcwusst,  conscious  or  knowing  ;  i.  e.  a  being,  and 
the  knowing  of  it,  implying  a  dualism  stamped  on  every  law  of 
thought  ;  for  to  be  and  to  know  are  separate  and  distinct  from 
one  another,  and  presuppose  in  created  h€\x\^s  a  duality  which 
enters  into  and  coincides  with  our  person  into  a  unity. 

Man  cognizes  his  individuality  only  by  support  on  another 
object.  Without  such  support  he  would,  as  a  merely  spiritual 
being  (as  a  singular  {i.  e.  individual)  being  without  support), 
dissolve  in  the  substratum  of  his  soul-life  into  the  All  j  it  is 
only  through  support  on  another  that  his  own  being  (existence) 
leaves  the  general  being,  peculiar,  distinct  and  individual,  and 
according  to  the  measure  of  his  endowments  and  their  de- 
velopment, with  a  growing  consciousness  (Bewusst7£/^r</^;^), 
which  by  means  of  the  co-operating  energy  of  his  powers 
through  the  will,  gradually  rises  into  being  conscious 
(BewusstJ-^zVz),  and  forms  individuality  {Persbnlichkeit).,  dis- 
tinguished by  self-determination  and  self-consciousness,  the 
possession  of  which  imparts  to  the  Ego  its  perfect  reality. 

But  it  is  not  so  in  the  case  of  the  consciousness  of  the  Ab- 
solute Spirit,  wherein  the  conditions  of  cognizing  Himself  co- 
incide with  the  unconditioned  Essence  circling  within  Itself, 

*  Sckutzwehr,  p.  7,  sqq.;   Sckliissel,  pp.  122-124. 


NOTICE   OF   SCHONHERR.  285 

and  in  as  far  as  Christ  is  essentially  One  with  the  Father,  He 
could  speak  of  the  glory  He  had  with  Him  before  the  world 
was,  and  in  this  respect,  He  had  a  Being  absolutely  founded 
in  God  and  determined  through  the  same.  His  Divinity  is 
indubitable. 

But  alike  indubitable  is  his  trite  huinanity^  for  in  that  there 
showed  itself  in  Him  a  determining  Being,  He  entered  the 
rank  of  persons  of  our  visible  world.  He  became _;?<?.$• /z,  and 
thereby  an  individual,  and  His  Divinity  in  so  far  conditioned, 
that  its  revelation  appeared  dependent  on  external  relations, 
especially  in  the  development  of  the  indwelling  divine  nature 
agreeably  to  the  law  of  sequence  in  time  ;  hence  He  increased 
(or  advanced)  in  wisdom  (Luke  ii.  52)  ;  and  not  until  He  was 
baptized  by  John  did  the  fulness  of  the  Holy  Spirit  descend 
upon  Him  to  abide  upon  Him,  just  as  He  was  not  glorified 
with  the  glory  which  He  had  with  God  before  the  world  was, 
until  after  He  had  tasted  death  for  us  (John  xvii.  5). 

So  far  from  regarding  the  mutual  communication  of  the  two 
natures  in  the  Person  of  the  Saviour  as  a  mutual  limitation, 
the  relation  may  be  presented  after  this  manner  :  the  First- 
born, who  is  at  the  same  time  the  Only-born  ;  the  Word  which 
was  in  the  beginning,  appears  as  at  first  in  His  operation,  so 
afterwards  at  His  coming  into  the  visible  order  of  things, 
accepted  the  condition  of  earthly  existence  in  such  wise  that 
the  primal  consciousness  of  His. Divinity  was  neither  dis- 
turbed nor  suspended,  and  that  it  was  only  the  Man  Christ 
Jesus  (whom  God,  His  God,  had  anointed  with  the  oil  of 
gladness  above  His  fellows,  Heb.  i.  2),  in  whom  the  fulness 
of  the  Godhead  dwelt  bodily."* 

It  is  exceedingly  difficult  to  do  justice  in  precise  terms, 
without  circumlocution,  to  these  profound  abstractions, 
which  are  mainly  given  for  the  purpose  of  marking  their 
originality.  Their  further  development  and  analysis,  and 
comment  upon  them,  would  lead  me  too  far. 

The  following  passage  is  very  striking  : 

*  Schlussel,  etc.,  pp.  124-127. 


286  APPENDIX   B. 

"  Through  the  vast  space  of  the  universe  (out  of  the  fulness  of  the 
energizing  activity  of  the  united  Primal  Powers  agreeably  to  the 
will  and  pleasure  of  the  Sole  Creator  and  Lord  of  heaven  and  earth 
according  to  the  original  law  of  operation)  the  developments  of  be- 
ing are  at  work,  and  as  does  the  heavenly  host  in  the  invisible  re- 
gions of  the  world,  so  likewise  does  the  countless  multitude  of  differ- 
ent creatures  pervade  all  the  reahiis  of  nature,  culminating  in  man 
as  the  fulcrum  of  their  full  co-operation.  Everything  under  the  same 
law,  everything  in  constant  development  of  being,  everything  moved 
and  engaged  in  dualism.  It  is  characteristic  of  time,  in  its  process  of 
germination  and  development,  that  all  the  sciences,  and  all  the 
directions  in  which  the  mind  of  man  travels,  ultimately  commingle. 
And  may  we  not  identify  the  red  thread  that  runs  through  them  ? 
Inquiring  into  the  histoiy  of  the  development  of  the  earth-body, 
we  found  at  first  a  period  of  dead  matter  without  form  and  life  in  a 
rude  metallic  mass  ;  in  a  second  period  it  took  form,  and  law  fet- 
ered  it  in  crystalline  combinations  ;  in  a  third  it  became  obedient 
to  vegetative  life  ;  plants  covered  the  surface  and  unconscious  ani- 
mals animated  the  waters  ;  in  a  fourth  period  the  vegetative  life 
developed  into  animal  life,  and  animals  endowed  with  the  capa- 
bility of  joy  and  sorrow  were  eagerly  occupied  with  the  further 
refinement  of  matter  by  changing  the  substance  of  plants  into 
their  bodies.  In  the  fifth  period  the  intellectual  life  of  man  be- 
gan to  develop  its  power  in  the  conquest  of  matter,  the  subjuga- 
tion of  the  elements,  the  enslaving  of  living  creatures,  in  order  to 
gather  the  intellectual  harvest  in  a  sixth  period,  we  will  say  that 
which  began  with  the  art  of  printing,  into  a  uiiit.  Thus  the 
earth-body  is  only  a  seed-bed,  in  which  the  pleasant  heritage  of 
man  luxuriates,  and  the  history  of  nature  is  only  the  history  of 
progressive  victories  of  mind  over  matter.  This  is  the  fundamental 
thought  of  creation,  for  the  attainment  of  which  individuals  and 
entire  generations  are  made  to  disappear,  raising  the  present  on  the 
scaffolding  of  an  immense  past."  * 

In  the  same  connection  may  be  read  : 


*  Schlussel,  etc.,  pp.  193,  194,  and  citing  Baer,  Ueber  das allgemeine 
Gesetz  der  Entwickelungsgeschichte  der  Natur,  Konigsberg,   1834. 


NOTICE   OF   SCHONHERRo  2Z'J 

*'  So  schauet  mit  bescheid'nem  Blick 
Der  ewigen  Weberin  Meisterstuck, 
"Wie  ein  Tritt  tausend  Faden  regt, 
Die  Schifflein  hiniiber,  heriiber  schiessen, 
Die  Faden  sich  begegnend  fliessen, 
Ein  Schlag  tausend  Verbindungen  schlagt. 
Das  hat  sie  nicht  zusammengebettelt  ; 
Sie  hat's  von  Ewigkeit  angezettelt ; 
Damit  der  ewige  Meistermann 
Getrost  den  Einschlag  werfen  kann." 

Gothe,  Zur  Morphologie,  I.,  p.   II3. 

SPIRIT,    SOUL   AND   BODY. 

According  to  i  Thess.  v.  23,  we  must  distinguish  between 
spirit,  soul  and  body.  In  the  soiil  the  Primal  Beings  work 
united,  and  it  is  the  Ego  which  dominates  both  in  the  forma- 
tive law  of  our  birth,  and  in  the  subsequent  choice  we  make 
of  the  use  of  the  divine  provision  for  our  proper  education, 
both  of  soul  and  body — that  is,  in  our  regeneration. 

spirit  denotes  the  dominant,  quickening  or  impelling 
principle  in  man  ;  it  is  of  divine  origin  (Gen.  ii.  7),  and  the 
Scripture  calls  those  who  submit  to  the  government  of  the 
Spirit  of  God  Ttvev/xaziKoi  (spiritual);  while  those  who 
do  not  submit  are  called  ipvxiKoi  (natural)  and  in  their 
lowest  degradation  6apKiKoi  (carnal).  Yet  it  is  not  the 
body  as  such  that  induces  those  states ;  all  depends  the 
rather  on  the  inward  direction  which  the  individual  gives  to 
his  heart,  which  in  the  Scriptures  is  regarded  as  the  centre 
of  the  soul,  the  determining  faculty,  as  it  were,  of  the  soul, 
marking,  according  to  the  choice  he  makes,  the  character  of 
the  individual,  as  spiritual  or  carnal.  This  is  brought  out  in 
Rom.  vii.  22,  23,  where  the  soul,  i.  e.  the  Ego,  in  process  of 
becoming  {werdend)  is  placed  between  the  law  in  the  mind 
(z.  e.  the  law  of  the  Spirit)  and  the  law  in  the  members  (/.  e. 
the  law  in  the  flesh)  moved  or  influenced  by  one  or  the  other, 
until  the  Holy  Spirit  (the  Spirit  of  Him  that  raised  up  Christ 
from  the  dead,  and  thereby  established   a  new  principle  of 


288  APPENDIX   B. 

life  becomes  dominant  ;  and  we  are  led  by  Him  as  the 
children  of  God  (viii.  14),  so  that  the  apostle  preached  on  that 
account  and  as  a  natural  and  necessary  consequence  the 
regeneration  of  the  body  (v.  11)  through  the  power  of  the 
Risen  Christ,  as  being  truly  the  restoration  of  man  conform- 
ably to  the  image  of  Him  who  has  called  us  to  glory  and 
virtue.* 

Schonherr,  says  Ebel  in  a  note  (p.  203),  was  wont  to  dis- 
tinguish the  men  of  the  sixth  day  from  the  descendants  of 
Adam  (see  Gen.  iv.  14-17  ;  vi.  i,  sqq).  The  former  he  calls 
Elohim-m^n,  the  latter  Jehovah-m&n,  because  of  the  divine 
breath  (tzvsvuo)  which  distinguished  them.  The  inferior 
race  was  designed  to  be  elevated  and  improved  by  the 
superior,  but  sin  having  come  in,  drew  down  the  pneumatic 
race  into  the  soulish  region,  and  the  destruction  by  means  of 
the  flood  was  necessary,  in  order  to  make  room  for  a  new 
planting. 

A  very  interesting  and  able  contribution  to  the  trichotomic 
distinction  of  the  nature  of  man  is  found  in  Klaiber,  Die  Neu- 
testameiitliche  Lehre  von  der  Smide  und  Erlosimg,  Stutt- 
gart, 1836,  p.  22,  sqq. 

REGENERATION.! 

The  creative  elements,  according  to  the  Bible,  are  engaged 
in  our  regeneration.     Hence  Schonherr  says  : 

"  Jesus  commanded  the  baptism  with  water,  and  baptizes  at  the 
same  time  with  the  Holy  Spirit  and  with  fire,  to  teach  us  that  as 
originally  we  became  out  of  fire  and  water,  and,  in  our  corrupt  state, 
so  we  may  be  born  anew,  and  be  wholly  restored  out  of  the  two, 
the  independent  Elohim,  and  their  Word  of  instruction.  It  is  the 
power  of  the  Most  High,  which  (in  the  Holy  Spirit)  comes  over 
man,  uttering  light  into  the  darkness  of  his  natural  being,  and 
depositing  in  him  the  germ  of  the  new  life,  of  the  noble  graft  from 

*  Schliissel,^^.  196-198,  Appendix  A.   The  Great  Change,  Part  II. 
f  Ida  V.  d.  Groben,  Die  Liebe  zur  Wahrheit,  pp.  292-297  passim. 


NOTICE   OF   SCHONHERR.  289 

the  heart  of  Paradise  above,  unto  the  resurrection  of  the  new  life  ; 
with  this  difference  between  the  new  creation  and  the  first,  that  in 
the  latter  the  creature  is  called  into  existence  without  its  conscious- 
ness, whereas  in  the  former,  the  creature  is  both  conscious  and 
co-operative.     .     .     . 

"  When  the  first  drawings  of  the  love  of  God  prompt  the  yearning 
within  us  to  live  forever  in  its  element — when  under  the  breathing 
of  Life  the  new  life  germinating,  tender  as  yet  though  resolute, 
eagerly  aspires  to  the  anticipated  liberty,  in  order  to  live  forever 
(Matth.  xvi.  24,  25) — that  is  the  time  of  visitation  and  preparation 
for  free  choice. 

"  Man,  in  the  bright  beams  of  divine  mercy,  begins  to  take  delight 
in  the  law  of  God  after  the  inner  man  (Rom.  vii.  22),  and  seeks  the 
light,  exulting  in  the  joy  of  his  heavenly  calling,  for  the  Lord  is 
his  Light,  and  makes  his  darkness  light.  But  sin  as  yet  holds  him 
bound  through  the  law  in  his  members,  until  (sincere  Christians 
know  this  progress)  in  the  extremity  of  the  struggle  between  hostile 
assaults  and  the  yearning  for  deliverance,  the  only  hope  of  suc- 
cessful transition  from  death  to  life  lies  in  grasping  the  power  of 
God.  ...  As  the  light  shining  into  his  natural  darkness  taught 
him  to  be  afraid  of  himself,  so  love  holding  up  before  his  heart  the 
indelible  image  of  its  holiness,  inspires  him  with  longing  for 
it.  This  is  the  moment  in  which  it  is  said,  '  Draw  nigh  to  God, 
and  He  draws  nigh  to  you  '  (Jas.  iv.  8),  and  then  faith  comes  in, 
with  firm  confidence  concerning  that  which  we  hope,  and  without 
doubt  concerning  that  which  we  do  not  see  ;  even  faith  in  the  grace 
of  God,  and  the  cheerful  surrender  of  our  will  to  the  will  of  God. 

"  How  little  man's  fidelity  in  this  the  natal  hour  of  his  will  unto 
liberty  deserves  to  be  called  a  free  act,  is  evident  from  the  fact  that 
in  this  his  turning  to  God,  so  far  from  being  conscious  of  actual 
willing,  and  still  less  of  ability,  he  is  conscious  only  of  his  inability 
to  deliver  himself  from  his  deadness  ;  and  while  under  the  billows 
of  darkness  and  death  he  reaches  for  a  rope  of  deliverance — like 
one  apparently  dead  moves  in  order  to  be  able  to  move — dreading 
the  worst  but  for  the  cheering  assurance  of  the  mercy  of  God,  who 
does  not  break  the  bruised  reed  or  quench  the  dimly  burning  wick 
(Is.  xlii.  3)  .  .  .  he  is  supported  and  strengthened  with  cheer- 
ful consolation,  patiently  and  courageously  to  endure  the  pangs  of 
his  regeneration  (2  Cor.  vii.  10).  .  .  . 
13 


290  APPENDIX  B. 

"  As  a  sleeper  is  wont  to  be  near  waking,  when  he  dreams  that  he 
dreams,  so  morning  begins  to  dawn  in  the  case  of  the  spiritual 
sleeper,  when  he  begins  to  grow  aware  of  the  sleep  that  lies  upon 
his  spiritual  life  ;  he  is  near  his  deliverance,  when  the  chains  of  his 
sins  cause  him  pain,  and  his  great  sickness  turns  into  self -accusation. 
Nevertheless,  God  is  near  him,  but  according  to  the  law  of  essential 
reciprocity,  operating  not  less  in  the  individual  than  in  the  whole — 
man  must  in  the  struggles  of  the  hour  of  the  travail  of  his  spiritual 
life,  assert  himself.  It  is  the  will  of  God  that  man  look  up  and 
seek  Him  objectively,  and  love  Him  in  return." 

HEAVEN  AND   HELL.* 

The  law  of  thought  is  simple.  It  runs  thus  :  similars  go 
together,  dissimilars  do  not  go  together,  according  to  this 
formula :  +  a  and  +  b  make  a  sum,  but  +  a  and  —  b  2.  dif- 
ference ;  what  comes  together  is  united,  what  does  not  come 
together  is  separated.  So  likewise  the  eternal  law  of  thought. 
According  to  it  God  judges  on  earth,  as  in  heaven,  and  will 
judge  in  the  last  day ;  according  to  this  law  heaven  and  hell 
are  thinkable  and  real.  The  positive  a,  the  Godhead,  really 
looks  on  the  negative  b,  sinful  man  f  (collectively),  in  mercy 
and  grace,  and  according  to  His  wonderful  Power,  effects 
really  that  a  —  b  become  like  a  +  b,  become,  not  are.  The 
miracles  of  God  are  effects  not  inconceivable,  not  impossible, 
but  more  than  possible,  transcending  human  power.  There- 
, — 1_ 

*  Diestel,  Ursache  tind  Wirkuug  audi  im  Bereich  des  Glaubens. 
Konigsberg,  1835,  p.  105,  sqq. 

f  In  order  to  avoid  a  dangerous  'misapprehension  it  is  proper  to 
remark,  what. to  those  familiar  with  arithmetical  processes  is  of 
course  superfluous,  that 

1.  The  negation  inheres  in  b,  and  is  not  made  to  adhere  by  a  : 
God  is  not  the  Tempter  to  evil  ;  he  does  not  tempt  any  man. 

2.  The  sign  minus  (the  negation  in  b)  does  not  cancel  b,  but 
denotes  the  character  oi  b\  b  is  not  canceled  (negates),  but  cancel- 
ing (negating)  ;  sin  is  not  as  it  were,  the  absence  of  good,  but  the 
presence  of  evil. 


NOTICE   OF   SCHONHERR.  29I 

fore  it  is  wrong,  and  a  dreadful  error  to  say  that  +  a  —  b  = 
a  +  b  \  for  the  negation  b  is  not  absolute  (the  assumption 
would  be  nonsensical),  but  relative,  a  negation  as  to  «  ;  en- 
mity against  God.  This  negation  God  cancels  (He  has 
placed  in  us  the  word  of  reconciliation,  2  Cor.  iii.  19)  ;  the 
—  b  \s  changed,  metamorphosed,  reconciled,  delivered  from 
the  negation,  freed  from  sin,  and  becomes  +  b  ;  with  the  re- 
sult that  ■\-a-\-b-=a-^b.  But  where  the  negation  remains 
there  remains  the  difference  ;  and  where  the  difference  be- 
comes real,  and  the  operation  is  finished,  where  the  positive 
a  meets  the  negative  b,  the  positive  a  is  the  more  potent 
negation  of  the  negative  b  ;  then  God  is  a  consuming  fire, 
that  the  ungodly  suffer  punishment,  the  everlasting  destruc- 
tion from  the  face  of  the  Lord  and  from  His  glorious  power. 
The  terrestrial  laws  of  thought  are  eternal  on  earth  \  a  -\-  b 
is  a  sum,  and  a  —  b  3.  difference  ;  and  so  likewise  in  the 
world  to  come  a  +  b  the  sum,  the  together,  heaven  \  a  —  b 
the  difference,  separation,  hell. 


CONSCIOUSNESS   CONTINUES   AFTER   DEATH.* 

"  The  consciousness  of  our  dead,"  said  Schonherr  of  those  who 
are  asleep  in  the  Lord,  "cannot  cease,  because  the  remaining,  fixed, 
imperishable  parts  of  the  perishable  body  exist  indestructible  and 
cannot  pass  away,  and  further  because  the  law  affecting  departed 
souls  is  grounded  on  the  imperishable  formation  of  thoughts,  words 
and  actions,  which  previously  during  this  earthly  life  did  already 
exist  along  with  the  complements,  as  the  permanent,  firm  formation 
of  the  two  Primal  Beings.  This  firm,  imperishable,  and  immediate 
spirit-product,  which  during  the  earthly  life  had  the  ability  to  think 
and  speak,  which  ability  it  also  retains,  because  it  was  formed  ac- 
cording to  this  law,  is  and  remains  both  the  germ  and  support  of 
the  soul,  as  an  immortal  spirit-nature,  and  as  the  same  conditions 
of  consciousness  continue,  it  follows  that  in  connection  with  the 
spirit  it  retains  consciousness." 

*  Ebel,  Philosophie  dcr  heiUgen  Urkunde,  iii.,  p.  iii. 


292  APPENDIX   B. 

INFERENCES.* 

Most  solemn  are  the  inferences  bearing  on  morals  which 
naturally  and  necessarily  flow  from  the  doctrine  of  the  two 
Primal  Beings,  with  the  fullest  recognition  of  the  Gospel  truth 
that  eternal  life  must  needs  begin  on  earth,  in  order  that  con- 
summation and  perfection  may  be  realized  in  the  world  to  come 
(John  vi.  40,  54).  The  life  of  a  true  Christian  infolds  the  still 
closed  germ  of  a  glorious  future,  but,  on  the  other  hand,  all 
whose  eyes  are  closed  in  death,  cannot  be  called  blessed.  By 
means  or  out  of  faith,  laying  hold  of  the  righteousness  of 
Christ,  we  are  restored  lo  the  faith  and  righteousness  accepted 
of  God — and  with  this  is  given  the  luminous  centre  of  the  new 
life,  the  sanctifying  principle  of  regeneration,  which  becomes 
manifest  at  the  turning  point  of  death.  But  though  the  word 
of  faith  is  not  preached  to  all  men,  and  consequently  all  men 
are  not  placed  in  such  a  decisive  state  of  conscious  accounta- 
bility to  be  either  saved  or  condemned,  it  is  nevertheless  not 
inconceivable  that  the  condition  of  a  filial,  confiding  surrender 
to  the  Supreme  Being,  of  a  yielding  to  the  attraction  of  a 
presiding  power  and  love  enchaining  a  transforming  influence 
of  their  nature,  should  operate  upon  the  individual  members 
of  a  race  living,  moving  and  having  its  being  in  God,  ena- 
bling them  according  to  their  degree  of  accountability,  to  up- 
build in  their  hearts  heaven  or  hell  even  this  side  the  grave. 
"Blessed  are  they  that  hunger  and  thirst  after  righteousness, 
for  they  shall  be  filled  "  (Matth.  v.  6). 

*  Ebel,  Schliissel,  etc.,  p.  238. 


en 


APPENDIX    C. 


HYMNS. 

JESUS,    MEINE    LIEBE,    LEBET. 

Jesus,  meine  Liebe,  lebet, 
Dem  es  ist  so  wohl  gelungen, 
Dass  der  Feind  nun  vor  ihm  bebet 
Und  der  Tod  im  Sieg  verschlung 
Er,  mein  Heil,  ist  wieder  Licht 
Der  im  Grabe  lag  verbleichet, 
Aber  jetzt  der  Sonne  gleichet, 
Mit  verklartem  Angesicht. 


2.  Einen  hofifnungsvollen  Blicb, 
Und  ein  unverganglich  Wesen, 
Bringt  mir  diese  Sonn'  zuriick, 
Und  giebt  mir  ein  Wort  zu  lesen  : 
Dass  die  Glieder,  ihrem  Haupt, 
Gleich  im  Leben.  gleich  im  Sterben, 
Gleiches  Leben  sollen  erben, 
Dessen  sie  zuvor  beraubt. 

3.  Liebe,  starker  als  der  Tod, 
Du  giebst  klare  Siegeszeichen, 
Machst  den  Feind  zum  Friedensbot', 
Lass't  den  Tod  znm  Heil  gereichen  ; 
Denn  wie  sollt'  zur  Sterbenszeit 
Mich  die  Botschaft  konnt'  erschrecken, 
Die  mir  sagt  von  Auferwecken, 
Nichts  von  Todes-Bitterkeit. 


294 


APPENDIX   C. 

4.   Sehet  nicht  auf  die  Gestalt ! 

Dieser  Tod  ist  nur  ein  Schlafen  : 
Kcin  Feind  hat  nun  mehr  Gewalt 
An  den  wiederfundnen  Schafen  ; 
Denn  der  auferstandne  Hirt, 
Der  sich  selbst  fur  sie  gegeben, 
Fiihrt  sie  durch  den  Tod  zum  Leben, 
Wo  er  ewig  triumphirt. 

5.  Bringt  man  micb  dem  Grabe  zu, 

Das  du,  Lebens-Sonn',  durchscheinest 
So  komm'  ich  zur  sussen  Ruh, 
Da  du  dich  mit  mir  vereinest. 
Wenn  du  nun  die  Stimm'  erhebst, 
So  wird  dies  mein  Fleisch  erwachen, 
Denn  du  wirst  es  lebend  machen, 
Und  niich  bringen,  wo  du  lebst. 

6.  Komm,  mein  Hirte,  flihre  mich  ! 
Liebe  !  gieb,  dass  ich  dich  schmecke. 
Sonne  !  lass  mich  sehen  dich, 

Dass  der  Tod  mich  nicht  erschrecke  ; 
Fuhrst  du  mich  zum  Leben  hin, 
Gieb  dass  ich  dir  folgen  moge, 
Durch  die  dir  beliebten  Wege, 
Bis  ich  ewig  bei  dir  bin. 


JESUS  MEINE  ZUVERSICHT.     (Eastcr  Hymn). 
IVtitten   by  Louise,   Electress   of  Brandenburg. 


Jesus  meine  Zuversicht, 
Und  mein  Heiland  ist  mein  Leben, 
Dieses  weiss  ich,  solh'  ich  nicht 
Darum  mich  zufrieden  geben  ? 
Was  die  lange  Todes-Nacht 
Mir  auch  fiir  Gedanken  macht. 


MISCELLANEOUS. 

2.  Jesus,  der  mein  Heiland,  lebt, 

Ich  werd'  auch  das  Leben  schauen, 
Sein,  wo  mein  Erloser  schwebt, 
Warum  sollte  mir  dann  grauen  ? 
Lasset  auch  ein  Haupt  sein  Glied, 
Welches  es  nicht  nach  sich  zieht  ? 

3.  Ich  bin  durch  der  Hoffnung  Band 
Zu  genau  mit  ihm  verbunden, 
Meine  starke  Glaubenshand 
Wird  in  ihn  gelegt  befunden, 
Dass  mich  auch  kein  Todesbann 
Ewig  von  ihm  trennen  kann. 

4.  Ich  bin  rieisch,  und  muss  daher 
Auch  einmal  zu  Aschen  werden, 
Das  gesteh'  ich,  doch  wird  er 
Mich  erwecken  aus  der  Erden, 
Dass  ich  in  der  Herrlichkeit 
Um  ihn  sein  mog'  alle  Zeit. 

5.  Dann  wird  eben  diese  Haut 
Mich  umgeben,  wie  ich  glaube  ; 
Gott  wird  werden  angeschaut, 
Wann  ich  aufsteh'  aus  dem  Staube. 
Und  in  diesem  Fleisch  werd'  ich 
Jesum  sehen  ewiglich. 

6.  Dieser  meiner  Augen  Licht 

Wird  Ihn  meinen  Heiland  kennen, 
Ich,  ich  selbst,  kein  Fremder  nicht, 
Werd'  in  seiner  Liebe  brennen  ; 
Nur  die  Schwachheit  um  und  an 
Wird  von  mir  sein  abgethan. 

7.  Was  hie  kranket,  seufzt  und  fleht, 
Wird  dort  frisch  und  herrlich  gehen, 
Irdisch  werd'  ich  ausgesat, 
Himmlisch  werd'  ich  auferstehen. 


295 


296  APPENDIX   C. 

Hier  geh'  ich  naturlich  ein, 
Nachmals  werd'  ich  geistlich  sein. 

8.  Seid  getrost  und  hoch  erfreut, 
Jesus  tragt  euch,  meine  Glieder  ! 
Gebt  nicht  Statt  der  Traurigkeit, 
Sterbt  ihr,  Christus  nift  euch  wieder, 
Wann  die  letzt'  Posaun  erklingt, 
Die  auch  durch  die  Graher  dringt. 

9,  Lacht  der  finstren  Erden-Kkift, 
Lacht  des  Todes  und  der  Hollen, 
Denn  ihr  sollt  euch  durch  die  Luft 
Eurem  Heiland  zugesellen  ; 

Dann  wird  Schwachheit  und  Verdruss 
Liegen  unter  eurem  Fuss. 

10.  Nur  dass  ihr  den  Geist  erhebt 
Von  den  Ltisten  dieser  Erden, 
Und  euch  dem  schon  jetzt  ergebt, 
Dem  ihr  beigefugt  sollt  werden. 
Schickt  das  Herze  dahinein, 
Wo  ihr  ewig  wunscht  zu  sein, 


POEMS. 

From  the  Morgenwache, 
by  Ida,  Grafin  von  der  Groben. 

I. 

ERFULLUNG. 

(Fulfilment,  a  Christmas  Hymn,  written  1847.) 

Is.  IX.  6,  7. 
I.  NiMMER  soil  es  sein  vergessen — 
Wenn  die  Finstemisse  pressen — 
Was  zu  Bethlehem  geschehen, 
Als  Gott  liess  den  Stem  aufgehen. 


MISCELLANEOUS.  297 

Zwiefach  in  der  Knechtschaft  Ban  den, 
Fremdling  in  den  eignen  Landen, 
Schien  deni  Volk,  so  hoch  erkoren, 
Die  Verheissung  fast  verloren, — 
Da  ward  ihm  ein  Kind  geboren. 

2.  Ob  auch  alle  Heiden  toben, 
Ob  die  Juden  Steine  hoben, 
Ihre  Zeit  war  langst  gemessen  ; 
Der  im  Himmel  ist  gesessen, 
Spottet  ihrer  von  der  Hohe 
Und  bedroht  sie  in  der  Nahe  ; 
Doch  dem  Volk  in  dessen  Herzen 
Seine  Kripp'  und  Sterneskerzen — 
Diesem  heisst  es  Wunderbar, 

3.  Wunder  ist  ihm  sein  Erretten 
Aus  des  eis'gen  Zweifels  Ketten  ; 
Wunder  sind  ihm  seine  Wege, 
Seine  schmalen,  steilen  Stege, 
Dass  die  Seinen,  aller  Enden 
Sich  da  zu  einander  fanden, — 
Mitten  durch  der  Feinde  Mauern, 
Die  von  beiden  Seiten  lauern, — 
Denn  der  Retter  heisset  Rath. 

4.  Ob  zur  Rechten,  ob  zur  Linken 
Die  verschied'nen  Geister  winken, 
Es  dem  Gleise  zu  entriicken, 
Und  mit  Dunkelheit  zu  driicken  ; 
Ob  sich  drangen  Schreckgewalten, 
Rathselvolle  Truggestalten  ; 
Weisheit  stromet  Well'  auf  Welle 
Aus  des  Sternleins  lichter  Quelle — 
Denn  das  Kindlein  heisset  Kraft. 

5.  Wo  die  Liifte  Flammen  fiihren, 
Und  die  Wasser  Engel  rlihren, 

13* 


298  APPENDIX  C. 

Wo  das  Wort  dem  Meer  geboten 
Und  erwecket  hat  die  Todten, 
Wo  das  Felsengrab  zerrissen 
Und  die  HoUe  weichen  miissen — 
Dort  hat  sich  der  Stem  gezeiget, 
Alles  sich  zum  Sieg  geneiget, 
Denn  das  Kindlein  heisset  Held. 


In  den  Kampf  ist  er  gegangen 

Aus  barmherzigem  Verlangen, 

Zu  des  Feindes  Lagerstatten, 

Die  Gefang'nen  zu  erretten. 

In  des  Wortes  heil'ger  Riistung, 

Vor  des  Weltreichs  finstrer  Briistung  ; 

Er  allein  vor  Satans-Nesten, 

Durch  des  Geistes  Krieges-Vesten  ; 

Der  da  Ewig-  Vater  heisst. 

Ewig  in  des  Vaters  Wesen 
Ist  das  Liebeswort  gewesen, 
Endlich  aus  des  Vaters  Herzen 
Ging  der  Sohn  in  Liebesschmerzen, 
Um  auf  ewig  Vater-Lieben 
An  den  Brtidern  auszuiiben  ; 
Fiir  den  Tod  will  er  das  Leben, 
Fur  den  Zwiespalt  Friede  geben, 
Heisset  Er  doch  Friede-Fiirst. 


Es  ist  vor  Ihra  hergezogen 
Jener  schone  Friedensbogen  ; 
Als  ein  auss'rer   Bundeszeuge, 
Dass  des  Hochsten  Huld  sich  neige, 
Mit  ihm  strahlt  der  inn're  Friede, 
Wie  in  jedem  Farbengliede. 
Also  wird  Er  Friede  schaffen 
Durch  der  Wahrheit  ein'ge  Waffen — 
Friede  Seinem  Konisreick. 


MISCELLANEOUS.  299 

IL 

HELDENMUTH. 

(Heroic  courage.      St.  Matth.  xxii.  1-14.     For  the  twentieth  Sun- 
day after  Trinity). 


I.  Freiwillige  !  hervor  "ins  Feld, 
Hervor  in  Schmuck  und  Wehre, 
Es  geht  zum  Konig  in  sein  Zelt, 
Zum  sieggewohnten  Heere, 
Schaut  nicht  mehr  nach  dem  Heerde  um, 
Schwenkt  euer  Fahnlein  keck  herum  ! 

2.  Wen  angestrahlt  das  hochste  Gut, 
Wem  schon're  Loose  fielen, 
Wird  nicht,  wie  ein  Philister  thut, 
Nach  Weib  und  Aeckern  schielen, 
Er  schlagt,  was  irdisch  in  den  Wind, 
1st  ein  frei  herrlich  Gotteskind. 

3.  Verachtet,  was  die  Welt  verehrt, 
Ehrt,  was  die  Welt  verhohnet, 
Schamt  dessen  sich,  was  sie  bescheert, 
Ihr  Lob  er  nicht  begehret. 

Das  ist  der  ebenbiirt'ge  Held, 
Dem  Gottes  Einladung  gefallt. 

4.  Der  zieht  das  Hochzeitkleid  sich  an, 
Er  ist  zum  Fest  bereitet, 

Die  Seele  glanzet  als  ein  Schwan, 
Der  sein  Gefieder  breitet, 
Und  in  des  Wesens  leuchtend  Schild 
Erscheinet  Gottes  Ebenbild.* 

5.  Der  Christ,  der  hochberuf'ne  Gast, 
Hat  weiter  nicht  zu  schauen, 

Als  nur  nach  jener  Hochzeitrast 
Und  ihrem  Morgengrauen  ; 
Das  ist's,  dass  er  nicht  schlafen  geht, 
Bestdndig  auf  der  Wache  steht. 

*  An  apt  portraiture  of  the  fair  writer's  own  character.     M. 


300  APPENDIX   C. 

III. 

DIE    WENDUNG. 

(Turning.     Farewell  to   Meran,   which,  as  the  Tyroleans  sing,  lies 
in  the  lap  of  the  most  beautiful  valley  of  the  Tyrol  ;  see  above, 

p.  igs-)-  

Du  "  Mutterlandel  "  im  Tirolerland, 

Auch  das  Tiroler  Paradies  genannt, 

Du  mahnst  mich  wie  ein  eigner  Heimathort, 

Du  nahmst  mich  auf,  du  warst  ein  Bergungsort  ; 

Hier  f and  der  Jugend  Sehnsucht  ihre  Flligel , 

Sich  aufzuschwingen  zu  dem  hochsten  Felsenhligel ; 

Sie  schaute  die  Verwandtschaf  t  Himmels  und  der  Erde, 

Sah  Wolken  rauchen  auf  dem  Felsenherde. 

Und  auf  der  Alpenzinn* 
Ueber  das  Schneefeld  hin, 
Tief  in  der  grauen  Nacht 
Halt  deine  Gemse  Wacht. 
Unterhalb  lacht  das  Griin, 
Darauf  die  Wolken  zieh'n, 
Hangend  in  stiller  Mitt' 
Winket  die  Sennerhiitt. 

Wenn  sich  nun  niedersenkt  des  Auges  Licht, 
Sich  ob  dem  griinen  weichen  Sammet  bricht, 
Der  deine  Hangegarten  ausgeschmiickt  ; 
Dann  ruht  es  wonnetrunken  und  erquickt 
In  deines  schonen  Thales  Grilnden  aus, 
Wohl  schimmemd  als  ein  reicher  Blumenstrauss, 
Da — stark  gewunden  nach  Tiroler  Art — 
Der  Mandelbaum  sich  mit  der  Pfirsich  paart. 

Die  ros'gen  Arme  nach  dem  Himmel  streckt, 
Daran  die  Mandel  ihre  Lilien  steckt, 
Und  sie  umgiebt  des  Weingelandes  Pracht, 
In  hohen  Bogen  aus  des  Erdreichs  Schacht, 


MISCELLANEOUS.  3OI 

Die  Thai  und  Hohen  iippig  uberzieh'n, 
Allabendlich*  in  dunkeln  Trauben  gluh'n 
Gesiedet  von  der  heissen  Sonnenlust, 
Feurig  ergotzend  des  Meraners  Brust. 

Doch  nicht  allein  viel  Friichte  edler  Art, 
Viel  hohe  Burgen  mit  der  stolzen  Wart', 
Wo  hier  die  Lanze  der  Cypresse  ragt, 
Und  dort  des  Oelbaums  helles  Silber  tagt, 
Auf  hohen  Almen  schlanke  Kirchlein  steh'n, 
Die  auf  des  Felsbewohners  Guter  seh'n, — 
Dem  drei  Mai  Friichte  bringt  der  Feigenbaum, 
Dies  ist  ringsher  der  Alpenbilder  Saum. 

O  schones  Land,  wo  im  Kastanienwald 
Des  Schutzen  munt'res  Jodeln  wiederhallt ; 
Wo  seine  susse  Frucht  ihm  labt  den  Muth, 
Er  im  bekranzten  Mandelschatten  ruht', 
Auf  altem  Stamm  ein  neuer  Wald  sich  hebt. 
Und  im  Gestein  des  Baumes  Wachsthum  lebt, 
Der  Fruchtbaum  sich  durch  seine  Spalten  drangt, 
Mit  seinen  bliih'nden  Armen  Felsen  sprengt. 

Wie  schlanker  Epheu  in  dem  grauen  Stein 
Untrennlich  wurzelt  als  zu  einem  Sein, 
Durchdringend  sich  zur  stolzen  Bliithenkron' 
Und  zu  des  Seidenbaumes  grilnem  Thron  : 
So  wiederstrahlt  der  Morgenrothe  Duft 
In  hellen  Eisesspiegels  scharfer  Luft, 
Und  wie  die  Sonne  hier  stets  milde  scheint, 
So  Liebliches  und  Grosses  hier  sich  eint. 

Horst  du  das  Brausen  tief, 
Wo  einst  der  Felsen  schlief  ? 
Das  ist  der  Passer  Bett, 
Dahin  sie  sich  gerett't, 
Als  jenes  Berges  Fall 
Sie  wider  ihre  Wahl 

*  In  autumn. 


302  APPENDIX   C. 

Aus  ihren  Bahnen  riss, 
Und  gen  Meran  verwies. 

War  reissend  ihre  Fluth 
Vor  andern  Bergstroms  Wuth, 
So  schaumt  ohn'  Unterlass 
Durch  jenen  engen  Pass 
Der  wilde  Drang  bergab 
Zur  starken  Etsch  hinab, 
In  deren  weisses  Meer 
Ihr  griines  Wellenheer. 

Und  in  der  Wasser  Schall 
Mischt  sich  der  Blichse  Knall, 
Des  Felsenkindes  Art, 
So  keck  zugleich  als  zart, 
Doch  iiber  Allem  thront 
Die  in  dem  Heil'gen  wohnt, 
Der  Glockenstimme  Laut, 
Des  Felsenlandes  Braut. 

Horch,  welch'  ein  Rauschen  dort, 
Welch'  vielverschlung'nes  Wort  ! — 
Hier  war  des  Stromes  Klang, 
Dort  des  Gebetes  Gang.* 
Und  durch  die  Lufte  wallt 
Und  zahllos  wiederhallt 
Um  alle  Tagesstund' 
Der  voile  Glockenmund, 

Der  von  der  Sonn*  erzahlt, 
Die  auf-  und  untergeht, 
Tirolers  Bergmusik 
Vom  Gliick  und  vom  Ungliick, 
Von  Berg  zu  Berg  in's  Thai 
Und  endlich  auf  einmal, — 
Das  Volk  entblosst  sein  Haupt — 
An's  Unsichtbare  glaubt. 

*  The  "Bittgang"  or  the  procession. 


MISCELLANEOUS.  303 

Im  Herzen  ach  so  warm, 
Den  Stutzen  in  dem  Arm 
Blickt  der  Tiroler  drein, 
Er  schaut  so  stolz  als  fein. 
In  seiner  kiihnen  Brust 
Schlagt  stete  Jugendlust. 
Er  spannt  das  Todesrohr, 
Sein  Jodeln  dringt  an's  Ohr. 

Ja  hier  ist  nocli  des  Deutschen  Vaterland, 
Hier  sind  die  fremden  Klange  noch  verbannt; 
Hier  ist  die  schlanke  Schonheit  der  Gestalt 
Noch  Bild  der  Kindesunschuld  und  Gewalt. 
Und  wie  das  Alpenroslein  lieblich  schaut, 
Tirol  in  seinen  Kindern  nun  sich  baut. 
Der  Fremdling  muss  ihm  Rede  steh'n,  wohin  ? 
Auch  wo  er  bleibt,  das  heisst,  wo  er  vorhin  ?  * 

Und  keiner  ist,  der  weiter  wird  gekannt, 
Als  wie  er  in  der  Taufe  ist  benannt. 
Hier  steht  der  Bauer  als  ein  freier  Mann, 
Legt  seinen  Schmuck  auch  bei  der  Arbeit  an. 
Es  wirft  die  Last  das  Magdlein  auf  ihr  Haupt, 
Tritt  damit  hoch  einher,  von  Wein  umlaubt. 
Man  trifft  die  deutsche  Sitte  hier  noch  an, 
Der  Welsche  ist  dem  Deutschen  nicht  der  Mann. 

Hier  wohnt  noch  Treu'  und  Glaube  an  das  Wort, 
Die  Bruderlieb'  als  gegenseit'ger  Hort. 
Die  off'ne  Wahrheit  ohne  Zorn  und  Neid, 
Der  klare  Blick  bei  Kindeseinfachheit, 
Die  Hoflichkeit  des  Herzens  sonder  List 
Hier  allgemeiner  Lebensgrundsatz  ist. 
Es  bliiht  die  Kunst  aus  der  Natur  empor. 
Die  dranget  Bild  und  Saitenspiel  hervor. 

Wie's  Kind  in  Vaters  Hause,  so  vertraut 
Lebt  hier  das  Volk,  ein  Tempel  hoch  erbaut  ; 

*  Where  he  lives. 


304  APPENDIX   C. 

Der  Priester  steht  ihm  noch  an  Gottes  Statt, 
Weil  in  ihm  selbst  Gott  eine  Statte  hat. 
So  zieht  der  frommen  Briider  braune  Schaar  * 
Von  Berg  zu  Berg,  an  Haupt  und  Fiissen  baar, 
Ein  Wesensband  verbindet  Schaf  und  Hirt, 
Das  Lammlein  nicht  auf  eig'nen  Wegen  irrt. 

Denk  ich  der  Mauer  lieb', 
Wo  wild  die  Passer  trieb, 
Bube  die  "  Kasten  "f  briet, 
Sang  zu  dem  Wein  sein  Lied  ! 
Oder  der  Zenoburg — 
Geht  mir  das  Herze  durch, 
Fort  ins  Passeierthal, 
Stets  meiner  Tritte  Wahl. 

Schau  ich  von  Berg  zu  Thai 
Meraners  Feuerstrahl, 
Festlichen  Flammengruss,:j: 
Dazu  den  Freudenschuss, 
Nachtigalls  Abendsang 
Am  hohen  Felsenhang  : 
Stimm'  ich  sein  Spruchlein  an  ; 
'S  giebt  doch  nur  ein  Meran  ! 

Horch  ich  des  Priesters  Wort 
An  dem  geweihten  Ort ; 
Lausche  dem  Morgenstrahl 
Im  St.  Valentins  Thai  ; 
Oder  niein  stiller  Weg 
Ftihrt  mich  St.  Le'nhard's  Steg  ; 
Wenn  ich  den  Jaufen  schau 
Ueber  der  Riffians-Au, 

Die  schone  Mendelspitz', 
Muthbauers  Felsensitz 

*  The  Capuchins,  the  real  pastors  of  the  Etsch  valley, 
f  Chestnuts. 

X  A  festival  on  the   first   Sunday  in  Lent  among  the  valley  folk, 
when  at  night  bonfires  appear  on  all  the  mountains. 


MISCELLANEOUS.  305 

Vom  schonen  Marlinger, 
Schaurig  und  lieblicher 
Als  and'rer  Lander  Pracht, 
Des  Etschthals  Bild  betracht'; 
Driiben  des  Naifthals  Schlucht, 
Wildester  Schonheit  Bucht ! 

Denk  der  Karthauserzell,* 
Von  deren  ernster  Schwell 
Mein  erstes  lautes  Wort  f 
Ausging  an  feme  Ort  ; 
Im  Blick  Ifingers  Thron 
Mit  seiner  gold'nen  Kron' — 
Ninimer  vergess  ich  dein, 
Wo  ich  mog  immer  sein  ! 

Tragt  mich  gen  Windschgau's  Au 
Der  stolze  Marmorbau. 
Strahlt  mir  mein  Dorf  Tirol 
Von  seiner  Burg  :  Leb'  wohl ! 
Wo  ich  so  silss  geruht, 
Durch  Saumthiers  sanften  Muth  : 
Ade,  mein  Rosenstein  ! — 
Zielspitz  im  Morgenschein. 

Tirol,  o  mein  Tirol ! 

Du  Land  der  Wonne  voll  ! 

Dahin  uns  Gott  gesandt, 

Und's  Herz  auf's  Neu  entbrannt  ! 

Land,  wo  die  Jugend  stammt, 

Wo  der  Sternhimmel  flammt, 

Wo  neue  Kraft  ersteht, 

Und  der  Herr  weiter  geht. 

*  Where  she  lived,  in  an  ancient  Carthusian  monastery  on  the 
Rennweg. 

f  Allusion  to  the  Liebe  zur  Wahrheit,  published  by  the  Countess 
in  1850. 


306  APPENDIX  C. 

Aus  deinem  Felsenhaus 
Auf  eine  Eck'  hinaus,* 
Frischen  Trunk  in  der  Brust, 
Geht's  nun  in  Fried'  und  Lust ; 
Aus  stillem  Riisttags-Ort : 
Auf  uns'res  Gottes  Wort, 
Glaubig  wie  Kinder  thun, 
Die  an  der  Mutter  ruh'n. 

Treten  die  Wallfahrt  an, 
Wie's  im  Tirol  wir  sah'n, 
Ganz  sonder  Furcht  und  Frag', 
Dahin's  Geliibd'  uns  trag'. 
Das  Gnadenbild  in  Mitt', 
Wir  haben  uns're  Bitt'; — 
Gehorsam  ist  der  Kent, 
Sein  Wille  unser  Stem. 


THE  MINISTER   IN   COMPANY. 

Extract  from  a  Memorandum  Book,  written  by  Ebel,  Nov. 
6,  1820. 

"  A  minister  should  be  as  careful  of  his  conduct  and  as  watchful 
of  his  thoughts  in  company,  even  the  company  of  his  friends,  as 
he  is  in  the  pulpit.  The  whole  of  his  life  should  be  one  ser- 
mon. Let  him  therefore  refrain,  as  much  as  he  may,  from  taking 
part  in  general  conversation,  and  reflect  on  every  word  before  he 
utters  It.  Let  it  be  his  aim  at  all  times  to  harmonize,  explain  and 
mediate.  It  belongs  to  his  sacred  office  and  ministry  to  preach 
reconciliation,  first  to  and  amongst  men,  and  then  by  this  very 
means,  to  God.  Gracious  Father,  how  humble  we  ought  to  be  in 
Thy  presence  in  order  to  avoid  giving  offence  by  a  single  word  ! " 

*  To  Hoheneck,  near  Ludwigsburg,  in  Wiirttemberg,  where  the 
author  of  the  poem  had  bought  a  country  seat,  and  went  to  occupy 
it  with  Dr.  Ebel  and  his  family. 


MISCELLANEOUS.  307 

LITERATURE. 

SCHONHERR,  J.  H.,  Sieg  dcr  gottlicheu  Offenbarung,  etc.  (Victory 
of  the  Divine  Revelation),  Konigsberg,   1S04.     Out  of  print. 

The  following  works  may  be  considered  to  contain  the  views  of 
that  extraordinary  man  : 

BujACK,  A^a/e^r/^««^i?  (Natural  Science),  in  Manuscript,  composed 
after  conversations  with  Schonherr  and  by  his  express  co-operation. 

De  la  Chevallerie,  Colonel,  Denkschrift  fiir  die  gute  Zeit, 
Konigsberg,  1835-6,  said  to  have  been  dictated  by  Schonherr  dur- 
ing the  winter  of  1808-9.     Also, 

Sachs,  L.  W.,  Grtmdlinicn  zu  einem  natiirlichen  dynamischen 
System  der  practise  hen  Mediciii  (Outlines  of  a  natural  dynamic  sys- 
tem of  practical  Medicine),  Berlin,  1821  ;  Ueber  Wissen  und 
Gewissejz,  etc.  (On  Knowledge  and  Conscience),  Berlin,  1826. 

Olshausen,  CJuisitis  der  einige  Meister  (Christ  the  only  Master), 
Konigsberg,  1826. 

BoCK,  Johannes  Schonherr,  dargestellt  in  seinem  Leben  tend 
Wirken,  etc.  (Life  and  Labors  of  J.  H.  S.),  in  Preuss.  Pro  v.  Blatter, 

1833. 

Olshausen,  Ein  Wort  der  Verstdndigting,  etc.  (A  Word  of 
Explanation,  etc.),  Konigsberg,  1833. 

BujACK,  Berichtigiingen,  etc.  (Corrections),  in  the  same  journal, 
1834,  also  a  second  contribution  to  the  same  periodical. 

DiESTEL,  Wie  das  Evangelium  entstellt  zvird,  etc.  (How  the 
Gospel  is  caricatured,  etc.),  reply  to  Olshausen,  Konigsberg,  1833. 
Zur  Scheidiing  und  Unterscheidicng,  etc.  (Separation  and  Dis- 
tinction, etc.),  Konigsberg,  1834. 

Olshausen,  Die  neuesten  Schyiften  des  Henn  Prediger  Diestel 
beurtheilt  (The  recent  works  of  Pastor  Diestel  criticised),  ibid., 
1834.  Leben  tmd  Lehre  des  Konigsberger  Theosophen,  Johann 
Heinrich  Schonherr  (Life  and  Doctrine  of  the  Konigsberg  theo- 
sophist  Johann  Heinrich  Schonherr),  ibid.,  1834. 

Anonymous,  Die  Schiitzwehr.  Abgenbthigte  Bemerkungen  uber 
die  in  derjiingst  erschienenen  Streitschiift des  Herni  Prof.  Olshausen 
gegett  Prediger  Diestel  enthaltenen  Darstcllung  tmd  Beui'theihciw 
des  durch  den  Theosophen  Schonherr  an  das  Licht  getretenen  6)'* 
terns  (The  Bulwark,  or  Remarks  necessitated  by  the  representations 
and  critique  of  the  system  set  forth   by  Joh.    H.    Schonherr,  the 


508  APPENDIX  C. 

theosophist,  as  contained  in  Professor  Olshausen's  polemical  pam- 
phlet recently  published),  ib.,  March,  1834.  By  the  same  authors: 
Das  Panier  der   Wahrheit  (The  Banner  of  Truth),  ib. ,  November, 

1834. 

Anonymous,  Jok.  H.  Schonherr  ujid  die  von  ihm  erkannte  Wahr- 
heit, etc.  (Joh.  H.  Schonherr  and  the  truth  cognized  by  him,  etc.), 
two  pamphlets,  ib.,  1835. 

Anonymous,  Gegenseitige  Liebe,  die  Quelle  alles  Werdens,  oder 
Zeugniss  vo7i  dcm  Ursprimg  der  Welt  (Reciprocal  Love,  the  Source 
of  Being,  or  Testimony  on  the  Origin  of  the  World),  ibid.,  May, 
1834. 

Anonymous,  Die  Blumen  ah  Verkiindiger  tind  Zeiigen  der 
Wahrheit  (The  flowers  as  heralds  and  and  witnesses  of  the  truth), 
ibid.,  June,  1834. 

•DIESTEL  AND  EBEL,  Verstand  und  Vermin  ft  im  Bunde 
mit  der  Offenbariing  Goites  durch  das  Anerkenntniss  des  wortlichen 
Inhalts  der  heiligen  Schrift  (Understanding  and  Reason  in  alliance 
with  the  Divine  Revelation  by  the  reception  of  the  verbal  contents 
of  the  Holy  Scriptures),  two  treatises,  also  with  separate  titles,  in 
one  volume  8vo,  Leipzig,  1837.  By  the  same  authors  :  Zeugniss  der 
Wahrheit,  etc.  (Witness  of  the  Truth,  etc.),  Leipzig,  1838  ;  Johann 
Heinrich  Schonherr s  Princip  der  beiden  Urwesen,  etc.  (J.  H.  S.'s 
Principle  of  the  two  Primal  Beings),  by  Diestel  ;  and  Der  Schliissel 
zur  Erkenntniss  der  Wahrheit,  etc.  (Key  to  the  Knowledge  of  the 
Truth),  by  Ebel,  etc. 

Diestel,  Ein  Zeugenverhor  im  Criminalprocesse  gegen  die  Predi- 
ger  Ebel  und  Diestel,  etc.  (Examination  of  the  Witnesses  in  the 
Ciiminal  Suit  against  Ebel  and  Diestel),  Leipzig,  1838.  Abridged 
in  Kanitz's  Mahn-wort  (Exhortation),  Basel  and  Ludwigsburg, 
1868.  Also,  Ursache  tind  Wirkting  atich  im  Bereiche  des  Glau- 
bens  geltend  gemacht  tmd  erwiesen  (Cause  and  Effect  claimed  and 
proved  in  Matters  of  Faith),  Konigsberg,  1835.  Das  Gesetz  des 
Rechts  und  des  Verstandes  gegen  dialektische  Gesetzlosigkeit,  etc. 
(The  Law  of  Right  and  of  the  Understanding  versus  Lawlessness, 
etc.)  Die  rationelle  Sprachforschung  attf  ihrem  gegenwdi'tigen 
Standpunkte  (Rational  Inquiry  into  the  Philosophy  of  Language  in 
its  present  state),  Konigsberg,  1854. 

Ebel,  Die  Weisheit  von  Oben  (Wisdom  from  Above),  Sermons, 
Konigsberg,  1823  ;  Der  Tagesanbruch  (Dawn),  Sermons,  Essays  and 


MISCELLANEOUS.  309 

Addresses,  ibid.,  1824  ;  Die  Gedeihliche  Erziehung  [^'sXyxi'sx^  Educa- 
tion), Essay,  and  Hints  to  Parents  and  Teachers,  etc.,  Hamburg, 
1825;  Was  gilt  im  Chfistenthufu?  (What  does  avail  in  Chris- 
tianity ?),  two  Sermons,  Konigsberg,  1825  ;  Biblische  Sprilche  (Bible 
Texts),  Guide  to  primary  Christian  Instruction,  6th  edition,  1842  ; 
Biblische  VVcihnachtsgabe  fur  Alt  tmd  Jung  (A  Biblical  Christmas 
Gift  for  the  Old  and  the  Young),  Hamburg,  1827 ;  Bibelworte 
(Bible  Words),  Guide  to  Christian  Instruction  of  Youth,  Hamburg, 
1827  ;  Das  Christejithtwi  oder  Winke  zuni  Verstdndjiiss  der  Bibcl' 
worte,  etc.  (Christianity,  or  Hints  to  the  understanding  of  Bible 
Words,  Hamburg,  1827  ;  Die  Apostolische  Predigt  ist  zeitgemdss, 
etc.  (Apostolical  Preaching  is  Timely),  a  Treatise  for  the  benefit  of 
Christians,  Hamburg,  1S35  ;  Die  Tretie  (Fidelity),  Sermons, 
Konigsberg,  1835  ;  2d  edition,  Basel  and  Ludwigsburg,  1863  ; 
Schutzschrift  fur  die  Bibel  gegen  die  Schriftzvidrigkcit  tniserer 
Zeitgenossen,  etc.,  (Apology  for  the  Bible  against  the  unbiblical  atti- 
tude of  our  contemporaries,  etc.)  ;  Grundziige  der  Erkenntniss  der 
Wahrheit,  etc.  (Characteristics  of  the  Knowledge  of  the  Truth,  etc.), 
Leipzig,  1852. 

Die  Philosophie  der  heiligen  Urkunde  des  Christenthiims.  I,  Die 
Berechtigtmg.  II.,  III.,  Das  Rdthsel  der  Erkenntniss,  (The  Phi- 
losophy of  the  Sacred  Records  of  Christianity.  I.  Title.  II., 
III.,  The  Riddle  of  Knowledge),  Stuttgart,  1S54-1856.  This  is 
a  most  thoughtful  and  exceedingly  valuable  book,  and  a  perfect 
mine  of  wealth.  The  Author  cannot  too  highly  recommend  it 
to  his  brethren  in  the  Ministry  as  very  suggestive  and  full  of  the 
choicest  illustrations.  The  contents  are  :  Part  I.  Relation  of  Faith 
and  Knowledge. — Knowledge  (Gnosis)  the  want  of  our  time. — The 
Bible  contains  the  true  knowledge,  the  ancient  philosophy. — Coper- 
nicus and  the  Christian  Thought. — Authoritative  faith  and  liberty 
of  thinking. — Spiritual  Experience. — The  Regeneration  of  Thought. 
—  Part  II.  The  end  of  knowledge.  — It  is  presented  in  the  form  of 
a  riddle. — Its  solution  declined,  or  a  failure, — Monotheism,  Panthe- 
ism, Monism. — Spinoza  and  Spinozism. — Part  III.  Absolutism  and 
Christianity. — On  the  Personality  of  the  Deity,  the  Continuance  of 
Man,  and  Free  Will. — Helps  to  solve  the  riddle. 

The  Latin  mottoes  of  these  three  parts  are  :  I.  Res  divinas  non  dis- 
putatio  comprehendit,  sed  sanctitas,  Bernhard. — II.  Ut  auiemmagman 
ornamentum  est  et  vita:  huinana  et  ecclesiiv,  philosophia,  cictn  rccte 


3IO  APPENDIX   C. 

erudite,  sobfie  et  tnoderate  traditiir,  itapestis  est  et  corrtiptela  jiidicu 
orufu,  cum  pro  philosophia  instillaiur  animis  coiifusio  opiomitn  ver- 
arum  et  falsarum  et  accessitur  studium  absurda  defendendi  verboruin 
prcestigiis^  ut  alii  Epicurceos  furores^  alii  Stoicorum  deliramentay 
alii  alias  opiniones  tueri  conentur.  Talis  consuetudo  parit  sycophant 
tas,  artitwt  et  vitce  cotiturbatores,  Melancthon. — III.  Non  tameji  qtiia 
aliquando  erratum  est,  idea  semper  errandum.  Non  enim  vincimur 
quando  offeruntur  nohis  ineliora,  sed  itistruimur,  Cyprianus.  The 
German  mottoes  are  equally  pointed  :  I.  "  It  is  not  the  purpose  of 
God  to  eradicate  nature,  but  allow  the  natural  to  remain  and  to 
direct  it  to  its  right  course.  "-Luther.  II.  "  The  Godhead  consists 
in  the  lordship  of  the  To-be,  and  the  ultimate  and  highest  end  of 
all  philosophy  is  to  advance  from  mere  being  to  the  lordship  of  the 
To-be."-v.  SchelHng.  III.  "  Of  what  benefit  can  truth  be  to  us,  un- 
less, like  the  sun  in  the  clear  heavens,  it  shine  into  the  eyes  of  every- 
body that  looks  up  to  it  ?  What  can  it  profit  us  if,  flying  from  the 
open  fields  of  the  human,  it  is  hidden  in  the  mists  of  an  exclusive 
school  ?"-Ph.  C.  Hartmann. 

Einige  Worte  iiber  Kindererziehung  (A  few  words  on  the  Edu- 
cation of  Children),  an  abridgment  of  Gedeihliche  ErzieJmng,  Lud- 
wigsburg,  1859. — The  last  named  work  has  been  translated  into 
English  (1825),  and  extracts  from  quite  a  number  of  the  other  works 
may  be  read  in  French,  in  Co?jipas  de  route  pour  les  aniis  de  la  verite', 
etc.,  Konigsberg,  1859. — Das  Bose  tmd  sein  Anhang  siegt  nicht 
(Evil,  and  those  who  follow  it,  do  not  prevail)  ;  a  posthumous  pub- 
lication, containing  a  sermon,  Basel,  1875. 

Separate  Sermons  :  Besonnen  sein — wie  heilsam  in  dieser  unserer 
Zeit  (Circumspection,  how  salutary  in  our  time),  on  St.  Luke  xiii. 
1-9,  Konigsberg,  1831.  Der  wahrhaft  christliche  Bail  (The  truly 
Christian  building)  on  St.  Matthew  vii.  15-25,  ibid.,  1835.  Gottes 
Fretinde  in  dieser  Welt  (The  friends  of  God  in  this  world)  on  Acts 
xix.  i-io,  20-40,  ibid.,  1835.  A  number  of  his  writings  remain  in 
manuscript. 

Kahler,  L.  a.  ,  Mittheilungen  iiber  sein  Leben  und  seine  Schriften 
(Information  concerning  the  life  and  writings  of  L.  A.  Kahler) 
Konigsberg,  1856.     This  book  drew  out  the  following  : 

Hahnenfeld,  Ein  Motnent  aus  den  Mittheilungen  des  Consis- 
torialrath  Kahler  iiber  das  Leben  tmd  die  Schriften  seines  Vaters, 
heleuchtet,  etc.,  (Momentous  particulars  in  the  information  given 


MISCELLANEOUS.  31I 

by  Cons.  Councillor  Kahler  concerning  the  life  and  writings  of  his 
father,  explained,  etc.),  Braunsberg,  1856. — Die  religiose  Bewegung 
zu  Kotiigsberg  in  Freiissen,  etc.  (The  religious  movement  at 
Konigsberg  in  Prussia,  etc.),  Braunsberg,  1858. 

Von  Bardeleben,  E.  E.,  Bin  Blickauf  die  einstige  Stellmig  der 
Obc7-prdsidenten  Atierstvald  tmd  Schon,  etc.  (A  glance  at  the 
former  relations  of  the  Provincial  Governors  Auerswald  and  Schon, 
etc.),  Stuttgart,  1844. 

Von  der  Groben,  Ida,  Countess,  Die  Liebe  zicr  Wahrheit  (The 
love  of  the  truth),  Stuttgart,  1850. —  Wissenschaft  tmd  Bibel 
(Science  and  the  Bible),  ibid.,  1856. —  Morgenwache  (Morning 
Watch),  poems,  edited  by  Miss  Ebel,  Basel,  1878. 

Kanitz,  E.,  Count  of,  Aufkldrung  nach  Acienquellen  ilber  den 
Konigsberger  Religionsprocess  (Elucidation  by  the  official  record  of 
the  Kongisberg  Religious  Suit),  Basel  and  Ludwigsburg,  1862  ;  His- 
torischer  Ausztig,  etc.  (Historic  Abridgment  of  the  former,  etc.) 
ibid.,  1864. — Ein  Alahnivort  zti  Ginisten  der  Nachwelt,  etc.  (A 
word  of  exhortation  addressed  to  posterity,  etc.)  ibid.,  1868. 

Dixon,  Spiritual  Wives,  London,  1868.     Answered  by  : 

Ebel,  Wilhelm,  Dr.,  Dixon  s  tind  Dtmckers  Seelenbrdtite  sil- 
houettirt  (Dixon's  and  Duncker's  Spiritual  Wives  Outlined),  Basel 
and  Ludwigsburg,  1869. 

Anonymous,  Wenn  die  Menschen  wider  Dick  wiithen,  legest  dii 
Ehre  ein,  und  wenn  sie  noch  inehr  zviithen,  bist  du  atich  noch 
geriistet.  Psalm  Ixxxvi.  1 1,  Luther's  version,  Basel,  no  date,  contains 
a  capital  synopsis  of  the  suit,  in  four  parts,  the  last  giving  the 
names  of  encyclopcedias  and  other  works  in  which  a  true  account 
of  the  matter  narrated  in  this  volume  may  now  be  found .  The 
last  work  of  this  kind  is  the  American  edition  of  Herzog,  which, 
for  the  first  time,  discharges  that  act  of  justice  to  the  English 
reading  public. 

Besides  this  long  list  of  works,  there  are  very  many  articles  in 
newspapers,  reviews,  etc.,  which,  for  want  of  space,  cannot  be 
enumerated. 


INDEX 


iEon,  278. 

^sthetical  Club  at  Konigsberg, 

35. 
ApostohschePredigt,  etc.,  quoted, 

77. 

Appendix  A,  218. 

Appendix  B,  258. 

Appendix  C,  293. 

Armenpflege,  114. 

Auerswald  Family,  135  ;  Ru- 
dolph's statement,  189. 

Augsburg  Confession,  38. 

Aiifkldrung,  etc.,  quoted,  142, 
160  sqq.,  167,  170. 

Autographs  of  Ebel,  188,   200. 

Awake  and  Awakened  Distin- 
guished, 52,  53. 


B. 


Baer,  Ueber  das  allgemeine  Gesetz, 

etc.,  quoted,  286. 
Bardeleben,  E.  E.  Von,  123,  124, 

135- 
Bible  Classes,  39. 
Bibliotheca  Sacra,  article  on  Ebel 

in,  referred  to,  178. 
Body,  The  (soma),  287. 
Borowski,  Rev.  Mr.,  37,  38. 


C. 

Catechisation,  58,  102. 
Catechumens,     how     to 


them,  60  ;  classified,  100-103  ; 
petition  of,  182-184. 

Change,  264  ;  The  Gj-eat  Chajige  ; 
sermon,  218. 

Chapel  of  Frederic  College,  ser- 
vice in,  described,  73. 

Christ  Jesus,  the  Person  of,  283. 

Christmas  Celebration,  194. 

Confession,  85. 

Confirmation  in  the  Lutheran 
church,  100,  lOi. 

Consciousness  after  Death,  291. 

Consentius,  Mrs.,  143,  204. 

Consistory,  64  ;  see  also  Reli- 
gious svixi,  passim. 

Contemporary  Review,  177. 

Crelinger,  letter  of,  168-9,  I74' 

D. 

Deputation,  Ecclesiastical  and 
Scholastic,  62  ;  assails  Ebel, 
79  ;  informs  against,  80  ;  re- 
buked, 80-82. 

Derschau,  Mathilde  von,  216. 
familv,  134. 


Diestel,  Heinrich,  Rev.,  his  tes- 
timony of  Ebel's  preaching, 
88  ;  details  concerning  him, 
132-3  ;  his  writings,  see  Liter- 
ature in  Appendix  C. 

Dixon,  W.  H.,  referred  to,  178. 

Dohna,  Count  von,  32  ;  his  sons, 
32-34  ;  presents  Ebel  to  the 
living  at  Hermsdorf,  37,  38  ; 
extracts  from  letters,  45,  46  ; 
offers  Ebel  another  living,  65. 


314 


INDEX. 


Dualism,  relative  of  Schonherr, 
24,  sq.  ;  see  also  Appendix  B. 
Duality,  269,  272  (Gothe). 


E. 


Ebel,  Johann  Jacob,  Rev,,  7  ; 
averse  to  his  son's  studying 
theology,  13  ;  becomes  more 
evangelical,  86  ;  his  death,  86, 
note. 

Ebel,  Johannes  Wilhelm,  the 
Venerable,  Ph.D.  ;  birth,  7  ; 
youth,  g  sq.  ;  first  instruction, 
9  ;  at  the  Latin  school,  Ko- 
nigsberg,  10  ;  inventiveness, 
12  ;  early  reading,  15  ;  school 
testimonial,  17 ;  relations  to 
fellow-students,  18  ;  death  of 
his  mother,  19  ;  doubts,  19-21; 
becomes  acquainted  with 
Schonherr,  21;  resemblance  to 
Schonherr  noted,  23;  a  candi- 
date, 30  ;  assistant-master,  30  ; 
tutor  of  the  Count  Dohna,  32  ; 
made  Ph.D.,  35  ;  pastor  at 
Hermsdorf,  37  ;  ordination, 
39  ;  robbed,  39  ;  intercourse 
with  the  French,  40-45  ;  a 
hostage,  42  ;  spiritual  crisis, 
48,  49  ;  occupies  the  parson- 
age, 56  ;  studies  hymnology, 
57  ;  his  interest  in  schools,  57  ; 
catechisation,  58  ;  assailed  iDy 
the  Deputation,  62  ;  applies 
for  the  vacancy  at  Frederic 
College,  64,  65  ;  examined,  66  ; 
appointment,  67  ;  institution, 
67  ;  farewell  to  Hermsdorf  and 
marriage,  68  ;  his  catholicity 
illustrated,  68  ;  the  only  evan- 
gelical preacher  at  Konigs- 
berg,  73  ;  estimate  of  his 
preaching,  74  ;  sermons  during 
the  war,  74-76  ;  other  sermons 
in  full,  Appendix  A  ;  comfort- 
ed by  the  experiences  of  Dr. 
Lysius,  83  ;  his  popularity,  84  ; 
chosen  pastor  of  the  Old  Town 


Church,  and  his  inaugural,  84  ; 
that  church  his  spiritual  home, 
86  ;  associations,  86,  87  ;  cure 
of  souls,  87,  88  ;  his  appear- 
ance, 88  ;  testimonies  concern- 
ing his  ministerial  efhcieney 
and  success,  89-91  ;  his  the- 
ology, 96  ;  his  preaching,  97- 
100  ;  differences  between  him 
and  Schonherr,  107-112  ;  let- 
ter to  Schonherr,  112,  113  ; 
care  of  the  poor,  114  ;  he  and 
Diestel  found  the  Prediger 
Krdnzchejt,  146  ;  his  friends, 
131-144  ;  his  enemies,  145- 
150  ;  popular  sympathy,  185- 
191  ;  farewell  letters,  186,  7  ; 
letter  to  Gasbeck,  187  ;  auto- 
graphs, 18S,  200;  account  of  his 
family,  192  ;  moves  to  Grunen- 
feld,  193  ;  visit  to  Konigsberg, 
195  ;  to  Marienbad,  ig8  ;  re- 
sides at  Meran,  198-200 ;  set- 
tles at  Hoheneck,  200 ;  life 
there,  200,  sq.  ;  jubilee,  205  ; 
birthday,  205  ;  his  death,  209, 
10  ;  sepulture,  211,  212  ;  list 
of  his  works,  Appendix  C. 
Ebel,  Mrs.,  her  death,  215. 

Adalberta,   Miss,  40,   192  ; 

see  also  Appendix  C. 

Lebrecht,  192. 

Theodor,  192,  200. 

Wilhelm,  Ph.D.,  178,  192  ; 

see  also  Appendix  C. 
Elohim,  270,  271,  274. 
Emotional  preaching,  77. 
Erfiillutig,  poem,  2g6. 
Eternity,  278. 
Evangelical,    the   term    defined, 

64. 
Ewald's  account  of  the  plumbs 

viajestaticusy  26. 


False  friends,  121,  122  ;  127-30. 
Farewell  letters,  186,  187. 
Fast  Day  discourses,  78. 


INDEX. 


315 


Feeling,  ranked,  77. 
Fidelity  in  the  least,  sermon,  248. 
Fink,  Count,  144  sq.  ;  137. 
Fire,  nature  of,  274,  275. 
Frederic  College,  64  ;  work  there, 

70. 
French    the,    near    Hermsdorf, 

40-45  ;    their    irreligion,    and 

respect  for  religion,  47, 
Friedrich    Wilhelm     III.,     135, 

143  ;  184. 
Friedrich  Wilhelm  IV.,  135. 
Friendship  explained,  117,  118. 


G. 

Gasl^eck,  letter  to,  1S7. 
Gedeihliche    Erziehung    quoted, 

31,  71,   117- 

Gellert's,  Moral  Prelections,  15. 

Gichtel  and  Gichtelians,  6g, 

God,  Schonherr's  notion  of,  268. 

Gothe,  Farbenlehre,  quoted,  272  ; 
Morphologie,  quoted,   287. 

Groben,  von  der  Ida,  Countess, 
testimony  of  Ebel's  preaching, 
90-91  ;  her  character  and  de- 
tails of  her  life,  135-138  ;  at 
Meran,  198-200 ;  moves  to 
Hoheneck,  200 ;  her  death, 
205  ;  her  writings.  Appendix 
C. 

Grundziige  der  Erkenniniss  der 
Wahrheit,  quoted,  264,  267, 
268,  276. 

Grunenfeld,  life  at,  described, 
193-196. 


H. 


Hahnenfeld,   Edward     von,  his 

youth,  138;  testimony  of,  179  ; 

invitation     from     him,     193  ; 

particulars,  197. 
Hahnenfeld,  Friedrich  von,  and 

his  sisters,  19*" 
Hake,  157. 


Hamann,  Johann  Georg,  Magus 
of  the  North,  16, 

Hamann,  Dr.,  10  ;  his  method, 
14  ;  a  sneerer,  17. 

Happiness,  267. 

Harvesthome  at  Grunenfeld,  ig6. 

Heaven  and  Hell,  290. 

Heldenmuth,  poem,  299. 

Herder,  17. 

Hermsdorf,  37-68  ;  the  people's 
joy  at  Ebel's  preferment,  86. 

Heyking,  Ernst,  Baron  von,  40, 
139,  189,  193. 

Hoheneck,  200-216. 

Holy  War,  sermon,  quoted,  75- 
76. 

Hufen-Schul-Verein,  117. 

Hymns,  study  of,  57  ;  comfort 
drawn  from  them,  94  ;  quoted, 
204,  209,  215  ;  also  in  sermons 
contained  in  Appendix  A  ;  fa- 
mous hymns,  Appendix  C. 


Impenetrability,  276. 
Industrial  school,  115. 


J. 


Jesus,  Meine  Liebe,  lebet,  hymn, 

293- 
Jesus,   meine  Zuversicht,  hymn, 

295- 
Joy,  described,  104-106. 


K. 

Kahler,  Cons.  Councillor,  ac- 
count of,  144. 

Kanitz,  Ernst  Wilhelm,  Count 
von,  121  ;  character,  133  ;  ob- 
ituary, 133  ;  testimonial,  159  ; 
his  relation  to  the  Suit,  160- 
162  ;    his     munificence,    184, 


3i6 


INDEX. 


198  ;    death,    216.       See   also 

Literature,  Appendix  C. 
Kanitz,    Minna,    Countess    von, 

her  character,  134  ZiXvA  passim, 
Kanitz,  Charlotte,  Countess  von, 

135,  145,  198. 
Kingdom  of  God,  282,  283. 


L. 

Lackner,  Rev.  Mr.,  184. 
Lactantius,  quoted,  189-90. 
Larisch,  Lieutenant-general  von, 

143  ;  his  children,  143. 
Leinweber,     Auguste,      marries 

Ebel,  68  ;  see  also  Mrs.  Ebel. 
Leinweber  Bernhardt,   1S8,  213. 
Liberty,  Moral,  95. 
Licht  in  der  Dunkelheit,  quoted, 

278. 
Liebe  zur    Wahrheit,  quoted,  91, 

261,  288. 
Light,  nature  of,  271. 
Lilienthal,  Gufe  Sache,  163. 
Limits  of  Thought,  277. 
Literature,  307. 
Logos,  the,  283. 
Love,  the  power  of,  108,  109. 
Luther's  Version,  illustrated,  93. 
Lysius,  Dr.,  founder  of  Frederic 

College,  83. 


M. 

Mahnwort,  quoted,  132  ;  and 
passim. 

Man,  compared  to  a  musical  in- 
strument, 140-141. 

Meran,  198-200. 

Miller,  Moral  Delineations^  15. 

Minister,  the,  in  company,  306. 

Ministerium  for  ecclesiastical  af- 
fairs rebukes  the  Deputation, 
81,  82. 

Mirbach,  Seline  von,  138,  149. 

Mission,  Ebel's,  as  viewed  by 
himself,  94,  95. 


Morgenwache,    selections    from, 

296,  sqq. 
Miinchow,  Carl,  Count  von  ;    his 

character,    141,     142  ;    invites 

Ebel,   193  ;  his  autobiography 

quoted,  203. 
Nicolovius,  State  Councillor,  64. 
Noble  Christians,  131  sqq. 


Odium  Theologicum,  74 ;  see 
also  "  Religious  Suit,"  151- 
190. 

01am,  278-2S1. 

Oldtown  Church,  at  Konigs- 
berg,  85  sqq.  ',  Ebel  elected 
preacher,  84;  services  there,  88; 
characteristics,  89,  90  ;  demol- 
ished, 124.-2  J  ;  the  congrega- 
tion, 131,  32  ;  the  present  in- 
cumbent, 184  ;  site  preserv'ed 
from  desecration,  184  ;  view 
of  the  church,  frontispiece. 

Origin  of  Evil,  281. 


P. 


Psedagogical  Society,  70. 
Pajtier  der  Wahrheit ,  quoted,  268. 
Paradox,  A,  Sermon,  236. 
Passenheim,  birthplace  of  Ebel, 

7. 
Petition    of   Catechumens,    182- 

184. 

Philo Sophie  der  heiligen  Urkun- 
de,  quoted,  291. 

Pleasures  defined,  105,  106. 

Poetry,  Selected  hymns  and  ex- 
tracts from  Morgenwache,  293, 
sqq. 

Popular  sympathy  with  Ebel, 
185,  191. 

Prayer  meetings  not  favored  by 
Ebel,  T03. 

Preaching  of  Ebel,  96-99. 

Prediger  Conferenz,  146. 

Prediger  Kranzchen,  146. 


INDEX. 


317 


Quittainen,   birthplace    of    Mrs. 
Ebel.  68. 


R. 


Rationalism,  78. 

Regeneration,^  288. 

Ecinhardt,    Ubcr  den  Werth  der 

Kleinigkeiten^  252. 
Relii^iose  Bewegung,  etc.,  quoted, 

179. 
Religiose   Nebenstmiden,   quoted, 

59- 

Religious  instruction  in  gymna- 
sia ;  lecture  on,  70. 

Religious  Suit,  150. 

Rescripts,  Ministerial,  80  sqq.  ; 
against  Pietism,  etc.,  127. 

Responsibility,  Ebel's  sense  of, 
92. 

Rieger's    Sermons,    quoted,     50, 

51,  53- 
Rogge,  Professor,  extracts  from 

letter  to  him,  130. 
Romer,  Pastor,  211,  212. 


S. 


Sachs,  Dr.,  no,  122,  157. 

Saucken,  Miss  Salome  von,  196. 

Schenkendorf  Max  von,  36,  202. 

Schleiermacher,  80. 

Schon,  his  character,  123,  136: 
passim. 

Schonherr,  J.  H.  His  life  and 
writings,  Appendix  B,  258  ; 
also  Appendix  C, ;  his  acquaint- 
ance with  Ebel,  21  ;  his  dual- 
ism, 24-26  ;  his  personal  ap- 
pearance, 26  ;  snubbed  by  the 
Eccl.  and  School  Deputation, 
62  ;  his  views  examined  by  the 
Ministerium,  80-82  ;  difference 
between  him  and  Ebel,  107  ; 
characteristics  loS-iio;  er- 
roneous notions,  iii,  112 ; 
Ebel's  letter  to  him,  112,  113  ; 


his  death  113.  See  also  "  Lit- 
erature," Appendix  C,  Bock. 

ScJiliissel  zur  Erkenntniss,  etc., 
quoted,  22,  263,  277,  283,  285, 
286,  288,  291. 

Schools,  rewards  in,  57  ;  Ebel's 
interest  in  schools,  115,  116. 

Schrotter,  Chancellor  von,  119, 
120. 

Schrotter,  Mrs.  Chancellor  von, 
136,    141  ;     her    family,    119, 

139- 
Schrotter,    Emilie    von,  extracts 

from  her  memoranda,  1 39-141. 
Schulz,  pastor,  letter  from,  195. 
Schutzwehr  die,  quoted,  269,  284. 
Sectirerei  explained,  87. 
Sentences,  the,  against  Ebel,  174, 

175. 

Sermons  of  Ebel,  Appendix  A  ; 
described,  gg,  100. 

Sermon  themes  at  Frederic  Col- 
lege, 72. 

Sieg  der  gbttlichen  offenbarwig, 
quoted,  25,  270. 

Social  intercourse,  118,  lig. 

Society  at  Konigsberg,  64,  iig. 

Soul,  the,  287. 

Sound  referred  to  as  illustrating 
the    dualistic    principle,    270, 

273- 
Spirit,  the  {pneumd),  287. 
Sprtich  -  Sammlung,    illustrated, 

71- 

Steinwender,      Advocate,    letter 

from,  214. 
Steinwender,  Mina,  Miss,  214. 


T. 

Ta<^es-Anbruch,  quoted,  56,  109. 
Theology  of  Ebel,  96. 
Tippelskirch,  122,   123  ;  passim. 
Trescho's  Religiose  Nebenstunden, 

59- 
Treue,  die,  quoted,  61. 
Trichotomic    distinction   of   the 

nature  of  man,  287. 


3iS 


INDEX. 


U. 

Ursache  tind  Wirkung  auch  im 
Bereich  des  Glaiibens,  quoted, 
290. 


V. 


Verstand  und  Vermmft,  quoted, 
54,  281. 


W. 

Wagner's  Staats-und  Gesellschafts 

Lexicon,  quoted,  207. 
Water,  nature  of,  275. 
Weihnachtsbescheerung,  185,194. 
Wendung,  die,  Appendix  C. 
Wilhelm  I.  Emperor,  135. 
Wollner's  edict,  172. 
Word,  the,  273,  283. 


